


The Games Rich People Play

by ShootToMiss



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Ben 10 Series, Danny Phantom, Gravity Falls, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: F/M, Paz has gotta deal with her father's crap, Teenage Pacifica Northwest
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-17
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:55:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 83,215
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23180542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShootToMiss/pseuds/ShootToMiss
Summary: After being dragged away from Gravity Falls for Spring Break, Pacifica now has to endure being a trophy child at some bigwig's weeklong event. However, she's not prepared for the friends she makes there. Among a detective, a gamer, a goth, and a kid villain, it almost sounds like a bad joke. And Pacifica might just be the punchline.But bigger things are conspiring on this resort. The underworld of high society is filled with figures who know how to abuse their power even worse than her father. If Pacifica's not wary, she could find herself sucked into the pit of corruption....
Relationships: Ben Tennyson/Julie Yamamoto, Danny Fenton/Sam Manson, Mazaki Anzu | Tea Gardner/Mutou Yuugi, Pacifica Northwest/Dipper Pines
Comments: 8
Kudos: 64





	1. The Game Pieces

**Author's Note:**

> Finally, finally cross-posting this from my fanfiction account. I've been working on it a while, so this account will probably be playing catchup. On the other hand, going through these chapters again, one by one, will help me make important edits to improve their quality. 
> 
> Enjoy, as the chapters should hopefully make their way onto here in a short amount of time.

"Pacifica, darling, come down! We can't be late to the party!" Priscilla called up to her daughter, sounding very impatient.

Said daughter was staring into her vanity, far less chipper than usual. Here she was, on brink of spring break, and she had to go to a week-long event for rich snobs. Dipper and Mabel had so many plans for the three of them to do… but no, some philanthropist from some resort island invited her family to a high-class party. And of course, her Dad accepted so he could brag to those not as rich as him… as well as brown nose to the ones who were richer.

It didn't help that her father had miraculously brought them out of their "rich poverty" (as he called it) and even past their former high point of wealth. So now, they were richer than ever. Now, her parents could afford better security that kept her in, while keeping everyone else out. At least, it would if Dipper and Mabel didn't have access to a plethora of Gravity Falls weirdness. But that was beside the point. They wouldn't be able to help her while she was on an island off the west coast of Mexico.

It was bullshit. Pure, unadulterated bullshit. Luckily though, she managed to get one last video call in to the twins about her plight. That way they could cancel all their breakout plans for the week. On the upside, she was glad to know they weren't very happy about any of this either.

_"This is the worst thing ever…" Mabel fell under the desk, sulking. "Over seventy percent of my plans for a fun filled spring break are ruined!"_

_Her twin, Dipper, was utterly steamed. "I still don't get it." He threw his book across the room. "How have your parents not learned a single thing about humility by now? Heck, I'm still trying to figure out how your dad got you guys so rich again. I tell ya Paz, something's up."_

_"I think so too, but it's not like there's anything I can do about it. They really beefed up security to make sure I couldn't get away; they even managed to get some of the best bodyguards that money can buy. I think I even saw a ninja…" Pacifica did catch someone watching her from the shadows... she really hoped it was a ninja. "And even if you guys do have a way to get me out. we're leaving earlier than you get here. My dad's pulling all the stops to make sure I get to that party."_

_Dipper raised an eyebrow. "Who on earth is he trying to impress that he so desperately needs you there?"_

_Mabel popped back up from the floor. "Yeah! I mean, what's up with this shindig that's making him be a bigger buttface than usual?"_

_Pacifica shrugged. "Usually it would have to do with the host, and how they're some bigshot that dad looks up to. Or so I thought… See, the other day I eavesdropped on him while he was talking to my mom. I was half-right. Apparently, he's going to meet with some of his business associates. Most of the time, dad's content with being as egotistical as the rest of the guests are. But these guys are so big that my dad doesn't want to risk displeasing or offending them, so he's trying to "give them every ounce of respect they deserve" or whatever. That includes making sure that every Northwest is there. Though why he wants to please them, I don't know."_

_"Well, whatever it is, you're clearly getting the short end of the stick." Dipper's face suddenly grew worried. "He… he hasn't tried using the bell, has he?"_

_Pacifica rubbed her arms, giving him all the answer he needed._

_Mabel became as serious and worried as Dipper was. "Oh no, Pacifica… are you…?"_

_"I'm fine." She replied, though the opposite was very clear. "I wasn't prepared for it, but I'm fine."_

_Dipper looked as if he wanted hug her. "Paz…"_

_"Look, you guys don't need to worry about me. I'll be alright. It's only a week."_

_"And then a few months until summer." Mabel added, not convinced._

_"I know you're worried. But I swear, I'll manage."_

_Dipper looked off to the side. "You shouldn't have to."_

_They all just sat there for a few moments, knowing they had to end the call, but not wanting to say goodbye. It took a little bit, but Pacifica finally spoke up._

_"I… I swear I'll be okay when you see me."_

_They looked at her, still worried. Both of them sighed. They waved to her as they all signed off._

She was broken out of her thoughts by a knocking on her door. "Pacifica Elise Northwest! Stop wasting time! We have to get going already!" She sighed and picked up her suitcase.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming." She opened the door, where her father was waiting for her.

"Hmph. You'd better drop the attitude. Especially when we get to the party. Is that clear?" Preston requested… though it sounded more like a demand.

"Crystal." Though if she were to be honest, she wasn't sure if she was going to abide by that.

Preston turned to go back to the mansion entrance. "You'll understand once you see the people attending. They are truly the best of the best! The cream of the crop! Who knows? Perhaps after you see how amazing they are, you'll finally drop this rebellious act."

"Yeah." Pacifica muttered the next part under her breath. "I'm sure they'll leave some kind of impression on me…"

* * *

A man was looking over information on his rather large computer. "Their status on the records changed. Now every single one of them will be arriving. If we want to find out what they're up to, now is the best time."

"Then I take it you'll be attending after all?"

"Something's got them ruffled, enough to gather them all in one place on short notice. I have a feeling the venom bust has everything to do with it. I need to make a few calls. I'll need someone to watch the city while I'm gone."

"Of course, sir."

* * *

A young boy impatiently tapped his foot as he watched the news report on a young teen hero. "And you're sure those two traitors won't be attending?"

An older girl replied in a robotic voice. "Indeed. Unlike you, they haven't paid bail yet."

"Good. I need a vacation after that "villainous team up" crud, and it would be rendered moot if they ended up attending."

* * *

A teen girl watched as her two friends packed up various tech into a duffel bag. "You guys remember that I'm only doing this for the mission."

"We just need to find out what that fruit loop is up to. I wanna know exactly why he's been extracting so much ecto-energy and sending it to his new business partners."

The other boy fixed his glasses. "Hey, look on the bright side. At least you can still wear your usual type of clothing."

"Yeah, that doesn't make me feel better. Spending time with my parents with other rich dunces at an environment killing resort? How fun for me."

* * *

"I've had it. Any more of that migraine's begging and I'm liable to grow a clot in my head."

"I don't like it any more than you do big bro, but if we finally go to one of his parties, wouldn't he be getting what he wanted?"

"He won't take no for an answer over long distance, so it seems he needs to be confronted face to face. And since he was so gracious as to send me numerous emails, I have all I need to publicly embarrass him into relenting. He'll be sure to understand how much I hate it when people needlessly bother me."

"Let's… hope it doesn't come to that. I'll go ahead and get the Blue-Eyes Jet ready."

* * *

Back in the Northwest's limo, Pacifica suddenly felt a strange chill crawl down her spine.

_"Huh… for some reason I feel more nervous about this event than before…"_


	2. The Detective

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a party for the rich. You think they're all philanthropists and charity workers here? Not even close. And some of them are the worst of the worst. Those cream of the rotten crop have attracted the attention of one man in particular, who has made it his job to take down criminals, no matter how high class they live. And Pacifica might find herself in his path, no thanks to her dad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here in this chapter, Pacifica meets the first of our series of guests.

Pacifica soon found herself staring down at one of the largest resorts she had ever seen. Various rides, casinos, and other miscellaneous establishments were spread out in every direction she could see from the plane, seemingly never-ending. She wouldn't be surprised if the place stretched out over the whole island. There was still jungle of course, but judging from the various buildings dotted across the jungle, she could tell that what was left of the flora and fauna was acting as some safari-zoo kind of place.

One would suppose she wouldn't be as bored considering all the activities on the resort, but her father had her under close watch right now. He didn't want to let her out of his sight if it involved her "risking the family reputation". So, for now, she was stuck doing whatever he was doing. And whatever he was doing was bound to be boring.

Though she likely would've had to stick with him today anyway. Tonight was meant to be the big opening party. Every socialite attending the charity event would be there. There was no way her father would let her out of his sight on a night like this, if it meant any chance that he would lose the respect of the other high class guests, or even the host himself.

Though she wasn't sure why he thought he'd lose the respect of the host. The guy seemed pretty lax, easygoing and forgiving. Horace Whimsley was his name, if she could recall correctly. He was some young British fellow who had earned his wealth rather recently, and a vast amount of wealth at that. Because of this, he soon found himself up to his neck in the slightly less rich bluebloods trying to cozy up to him. Pacifica's father included. No one could really tell if he was aware of these attempts to get in his good graces, but if he was, he didn't show it.

From what she looked up on him though, he seemed to be a fairly nice guy. After his big break, he started up a company devoted to inventing tech for hospitals and schools, and former employees had been known to speak very highly of him. Heck, his entire reason for setting up this weeklong event was for charity. The rich guests attending were encouraged to spend their money at the various parks and institutes spread out across the island. Any purchases made by attendees would be given to charities of their choosing. Not only that, but they were permitted to host other smaller events to raise awareness for said charities.

Most of those who were here for the event were likely just participating to show off. She had met enough snobs at the Northwest's annual party to know that people like that would definitely show up. Perhaps there would actually humane individuals there that would put their passion into the event, but at this point she could only hope.

"Mr. Northwest, we are about to touch down." A male voice relayed over the intercom. "I've been told that we are among the first to arrive at the island."

Preston looked pleased. "Very good. Then we've already made a nice first impression."

"Oh man. We've totally impressed him with our punctuality. It's not like he's the type of guy that would just be glad we made it." Pacifica interjected, seeping with sarcasm.

She heard her mother scoff in her seat. "Come now Pacifica. How many times must I tell you that you should never aim for mediocrity? It's unbecoming for people like us."

Pacifica rolled her eyes. "If being mediocre means that I don't have to waste my dignity sucking up to a guy that probably doesn't care, I think I'll take my chances."

"You will do no such thing. Despite what you may think Pacifica, it is far from "sucking up". It is showing a sign of respect, something that a man of Mr. Whimsley's class deserves." Preston replied, sounding very irritated. "And what did I say about that attitude?"

"We're not at the party yet. I'll be as snarky as I want until we get there."

Preston narrowed his eyes. "We're at the island. I classify that as "getting there"." Before Pacifica snapped back, he took out a small box. Pacifica went silent. "You are not ruining this for us, Pacifica. I will not hesitate to use this if you act up. So, I suggest you straighten out. Do I make myself clear?"

Pacifica stayed quiet, and simply nodded.

"Good." Preston relaxed back into his chair, content.

Pacifica, on the other hand, was gripping the armrests of her chair tightly, absolutely frustrated. This was going to be a long week.

* * *

For a moment, she could've sworn they were back in the old Northwest Mansion. She would've thought she had traveled back in time had she not known better. Though there were a few differences. The employees, for one, were quite carefree. They were still focused on their jobs, but they had the faces of people that were glad to be here, rather than the emotionless and broken men and women that worked for the Northwests. Some were engaged in casual conversation while others smiled and cheerfully greeted arriving guests. Seems this Horace guy really was a good boss.

And instead of animal heads and skins decorating the place, there were a multitude of paintings depicting various countries and cultures. She was able to discern a few, but there were others she hadn't even seen before. It was a nice change from the hunting trophies she was used to seeing. Pacifica always thought those things were creepy. Even more so after one certain night…

The manager came by. "Ah, the Northwests! It is so nice to see you here!" He snapped, and several men came over, picking up the family's luggage. "Mr. Whimsley was glad you were able to make it. He simply must know how you managed to gain your lost wealth, and then some!"

Preston chuckled, glad to be recognized. "Ah, yes. I'll be able to tell him in full detail when I see him at the party. It's one of great emotion." Pacifica wished she could call bull on that. She knew better than anyone how corrupt the Northwests were. But for now, she kept her mouth shut.

"You and your family will be on the 10th floor. A friend of yours had it reserved for you. Said he was a business partner." He said as he handed Preston the key.

"I was expecting that. We've been planning on a meeting here with a few other associates for a while now." As they entered the elevator, Pacifica couldn't help but think that said associates were a part of her dad's antics. She could only suspect for now.

Pacifica groaned as she recognized the head of a giant moose above the fireplace. A bear skin rug was draped across the floor, and a taxidermized cougar was in the corner. And that only scratched the surface. Whether Preston had requested that of his friend, she didn't know, but she was not looking forward to sleeping in this suite regardless. Now, not only would she wake up during the night, wondering if they were going to be dripping blood, but she also had to be reminded of the town she'd rather be in. She entertained the thought that her father did this to taunt her. She wouldn't put it past him to do so.

"Alright, the time is 12:04. We must be there by 2:00 if we are to make a good impression." Preston looked in the mirror. "That means you had better be ready at 1:30, Pacifica."

Pacifica didn't give him an answer, simply slumping off to her bedroom to change. She could almost feel his grin as he watched her feel defeated.

Luckily, she had her ways of getting back at him. Opening her suitcase, she pulled out a dress very familiar to her. It was a nice light purple, with fur adjourned on its shoulders and at the bottom. To match with it was a Chalcedony necklet, shining with the same color as the dress (1), and a set of purple high heels.

Not only was this a good way to spit in her father's face, but it also meant very much to her. This was one of only things she remembered fondly about that night... along with… someone else. To be honest, it wasn't the same exact dress… she could no longer fit in the original at her age. But she had kept the design over the years, and secretly asked the family tailor to make a new one for her when the previous no longer fit. It was a memento of the party that changed her for the better. At this point, Pacifica considered it to be a good luck charm. Nights always seemed to go better when she wore it.

On the other hand, her father had come to regard everything that night as things he never wanted to encounter again. He grew internally livid anytime Pacifica had the dress on, but no matter what he did, she always managed to sneak it around him somehow.

She emerged from her room, a good few minutes before 1:30. Priscilla was the first to notice her and her eyes widened. Her following sigh caught Preston's attention.

"Is that Pacifi-," He paused, already silently boiling in rage. Pacifica simply looked at him as if she didn't know what he grew silent about. He turned his head, and breathed heavily, trying to calm himself down. Pacifica gained a smug grin, amused at his anger.

He sat there for a good few minutes, mentally talking himself down. They had been through the motions before, and her father had discovered that this was one of those few things that she was stubborn to keep. Stubborn enough to power through his trump card. At best, he could only wonder how Pacifica managed to sneak the dress past him this time.

"Preston?" Her mother questioned. She almost sounded like she was having an emotion.

Preston took a deep breath, having calmed down. "Let's. Just. Go." Well, calmed down only a tiny bit. He walked over to the door, stomping the whole way.

Pacifica snickered. She'd at least have some good moments this week.

* * *

A middle aged man adjusted his tie, doing his best to make himself quite presentable, against his own personal wishes. He never liked these types of events. They mostly attracted the arrogant and sinister. but the getup was necessary if he was to seem somewhat normal. It was just going to be for tonight anyway. He could at least use more casual clothes the next few days. He'd still be playing up the part. Then when the time was right, he could slip away and…"

"Yo, Bruce! Hellooooo? You in there?" The sound of Dick yelling on the video phone quickly drowned out his thoughts. "The heck's on your mind? Took me at least ten seconds to get your attention."

"I haven't been to an event of this size and time in a while. It's going to require a lot of self-control to make sure I'm not seen as anyone but Bruce Wayne." Well, that, and he was leaving Gotham out of his care for a whole week.

"Don't worry Bruce! Maybe you should try that one thing you did with Gordon in your first year. Remember when Barbara found out about that? The look on her face…" Bruce gave him a look. Dick chuckled, but his face suddenly grew serious. "All joking aside, yeah, trying to spy on all the suspects as they meet at one of the classiest events in the world is gonna be tough. I mean, we all know how hard it is for you to go on vacation, so acting like you're on one could be just as difficult."

Bruce sighed. "It's not a vacation Dick. I'm going undercover, that's all."

Dick rolled his eyes. "Yeah, undercover at one of the biggest resorts in the world. I'd say you're still on vacation. You're just taking work with you."

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "What happened to "all joking aside"?"

"Still…" Dick interjected, ignoring Bruce. "It's pretty clever to use the charity event as cover. They could all meet without anyone becoming suspicious of them. Just another group of tycoons in talks with one another."

"Which means no one will really bother remembering that each one of them has had a questionable background." Bruce finished, cycling through the files of each suspect. "And it helps that they're guarded by the highest levels of security."

Dick was already reading up files of his own, though these were more focused on the island itself. "You know, rumor is, Superman could ask to come in as a reward for saving the world and they'd still reject him. Mostly because they wouldn't want him spying on other guests. Which means, if they catch Batman snooping around, they'll hunt him down and kick him out, no matter what reasons he had." He looked back at Bruce with a bit of worry. "These guys have really good countermeasures against heroes and villains, Bruce. That Horace guy prides himself on it. Sure hope you're in your best shape."

"I'm more concerned with you handling Gotham. Can you take care any remaining smuggling operations in the area?"

"I'll be fine. All the villains are locked up in Arkham right now. And even if they got out, I know how to play the part. Gotham will never know Batman left."

Bruce noticed Whimsley's mansion coming into view. "Okay, I'm about to enter the party. Keep an eye on Bane. I'll contact you and the others later."

"See ya, Bruce."

The call shut off, Bruce combing down his hair one last time, just to be sure. He exited the car, but turned back to the driver. "Go ahead and come back around 10:30, Alfred."

The butler nodded and gave Wayne a smile in response. "Of course, Master Bruce. Good luck." Bruce closed the door, and the limo drove away.

Time to get this over with.

* * *

"Bruce Wayne! It's so wonderful that you're here!" Bruce jumped back in response. Of the possible first encounters he could've had with the host, he hadn't expected the man to be right in his face. In fact, it almost looked as if he was trying to calm himself down. "I've heard a great deal about your efforts in Gotham City. You can imagine my delight when you said you could make it to the resort!"

Bruce adopted his lighter personality. "Well, the holidays seem to give me more on my plate rather than take from it. I'm so busy working late nights that I don't have time to relax. But I managed to do enough that I can finally take this spring break off."

"Well, at least you aren't quite as busy as that Batman fellow, eh?" He jabbed his elbow, and laughed a bit. Bruce gave a sincere sounding laugh of his own. "But it is really good that you could make it, Mr. Wayne. An event like this could really benefit from your presence."

"I don't know what difference I could make at this party. It seems the best I could do is use up more money than others. Unless you wanted to work together on a project?" Bruce questioned.

"Well, I'd love to, but that's not the reason." Whimsley directed Bruce down a hallway. "But perhaps we could talk about it later. I must greet my next guests. Please enjoy yourself tonight. You've more than earned it." Bruce nodded, and began down the hallway.

He seemed like an admirable person. But that only made Bruce even more suspicious of him. As nice as he seemed, he had still invited several questionable figures to his party, confident his security measures could handle them if they acted up. And he refused superheroes to investigate anybody while they were on the island. Bruce could understand wanting to give criminals a chance to turn a new leaf, but one couldn't be completely reckless like that. That either meant he was naïve, foolish… or he was planning something. It assumed the worst of him, but Bruce couldn't just leave that option out.

"Introducing Master Bruce Wayne, of Wayne Enterprises!"

But that would have to wait. He had to focus on people that had far more going against them right now. They were the ones who had a hand in criminal activities across Gotham. He'd wait in the main ballroom for now, scouting out his targets. While he waited, he thought back to how this all started.

For weeks now, several venom shipping operations had been based in Gotham, all led by Bane. Batman had finally tracked down the venom user himself and put a stop to the operations, learning that the drugs he'd prepared this time around weren't meant for Gotham streets. They had been exported as well as imported. Upon investigation, Batman had discovered that several "unknown" benefactors had funded Bane to ship these batches of venom across the country. Or at least, they had thought they were unknown.

They had likely faced very little opposition to their actions, or did them under the radar, but they didn't mask their tracks well enough. Hacking encrypted messages sent to Bane by his sources, Batman found they pointed towards four wealthy individuals going to this very event. All four individuals attending the same party meant that Bruce could keep an eye on all of them at once, and obtain the evidence he needed.

"Introducing Preston and Priscilla Northwest, and their daughter Pacifica, of Northwest Mudflaps!"

As if on cue, one of his targets had arrived. Out of all four of the perpetrators, Northwest was the lousiest in the group. His encrypted messages noted various partner companies he had planned to use to ship the venom, seemingly forgetting that he was the only one partnered with those trucking companies. His gain from this "operation" was obvious; no one failed to notice his staggering rise in wealth in the past year.

At first, Batman simply thought that this made Northwest the weak link. After all, the other three had gained money out of the operation, albeit much smaller amounts. And it was only because of Northwest's massive increase that he noticed the others as well- a short infiltration mission to his mansion had him finding bank statements containing deposits from a mysterious source (Bane, of course). This prompted further investigations involving him hacking into the files of the other three, where he found that very same source.

But then he realized- the amounts they had gained were almost unnoticeable. They could still easily pass as being a part of their legitimate business sales. Northwest on the other hand, was obvious. His partners could still hide it somewhat, but they weren't trying very hard. It dawned on the caped crusader that he wasn't the weak link... he was the decoy. Like a lizard's tail, he would be left behind when suspicions arose and the group was threatened, taking most of the heat while the others "got away".

Poor fool probably expected an easy deal, not knowing what he was getting into.

Bruce walked over, introducing himself. "Well, you must be Preston Northwest! I've heard about how you broke your fortune out of its slump."

As soon as Northwest saw him, Bruce noticed that he also looked like he was trying to contain excitement. Well, it was obvious now why Northwest was the decoy. "Mr. Wayne! I-I'm honored you took notice! It was surely one of my greatest moments!" Not very modest either. But then, why would he be? He gestured over to his family. "My wife, Priscilla."

The woman curtsied. "We too, have heard of your accomplishments with Wayne Enterprises! Your work in Wayne Technologies being the most recent."

"And my daughter, Pacifica." He caught minor bits of aggression from Preston as he motioned her to greet Bruce. He had seen her before, when he infiltrated the mansion. In fact, she had nearly seen him, but he managed to slip away before she knew who was there.

She gave a rather weak wave. "Hi… I've heard of your work with the Thomas Wayne and Matha Wayne foundations. It's admirable work, really." Preston grew strangely nervous. He gave his wife a look.

"Oh, Preston, aren't those some old associates of yours over there?" Priscilla interjected. Pacifica's eyes widened a bit, then grew tired looking as she sighed.

"Why yes, yes they are? Mr. Wayne, I'd love to talk, but I'd really like to catch up with some of my old business partners."

Bruce was a bit dumbfounded, but went with it. "Of… course. Later, then?"

"Indeed!" He said, guiding his family off. Just when he was out of a normal person's earshot, he began talking to Pacifica under his breath. It would've gone unnoticed by Bruce… had he not trained his ears for this sort of thing. "The Wayne Foundations! Have you gone mad?" Preston whispered.

"They're named after his parents, I'd think he'd be proud of them!" Pacifica bit back.

"No one likes to be reminded of their work with the common crowd, Pacifica. Look, perhaps you should just sit at that table over there and wait." He motioned to a table near the corner. "That way you won't say something so unsophisticated."

Pacifica looked as shocked as one whispering could. "Are you seriously telling me to sit and look pretty?!"

"If keeps you out of trouble, then yes." Pacifica growled, but left towards the table.

Bruce didn't like this one bit. Preston's foul behavior towards his own daughter was a bright red flag. Was there something Pacifica knew that Preston was worried about her revealing?

Perhaps it would be best to ask her himself.

* * *

Pacifica sat at the lone table near the corner, already feeling miserable. And she was barely into the first hour of this stupid party. Her mind was filled with very not-ladylike things concerning her father, mostly involving knives, fire, and the like.

"Excuse me?" She jolted, not expecting someone to talk to her. To her surprise, Bruce Wayne had come to continue conversation. "Pacifica, was it?"

"Uh…" Pacifca's eyes darted over to where her father was, currently talking to a group he actually wasn't associates with.

Mr. Wayne eyes widened. "Oh! Apologies if I seem a bit upfront, but I was worried. His departure was very sudden. Did I do something to offend your father?"

Typical. Dad's interpretation of the situation was completely off. "No. He thought that I- well, he thought you were the one offended."

Bruce pretended to look surprised. "Really? The feeling never crossed my mind."

"Yeah, well that's dad for you. Reads into situations in a way no one else can." Pacifica stated, rather bitterly.

He could already tell she was on bad terms with her parents. Hopefully, that meant she wasn't in on her father's plot. But even if she wasn't, the relationship seemed worrisome. Considering how he was talking to her earlier, he didn't have any doubts as to what it was really like, and yet…

"Pacifica, is everything alright with your father?" Bruce asked sincerely.

She didn't answer, instead staring at him for a little bit in silence. She looked away after a little bit.

Bruce thought for a moment. "Hmm… well, if you feel like telling anyone, here." He handed her a number. "It's a number for a very good therapist I know. She and the people she knows can help with anything you throw at them. Trust me, I know. And I'm here to talk, if you need it."

"…Right."

"Oh, and Pacifica…" She lifted her head up. "You're right. I am very proud of those foundations." He walked away, leaving Pacifica stunned.

She finally snapped out of it a few moments later. He had heard…? But… no. Even if she knew that, she couldn't tell him. Well, she wanted to tell him, but couldn't bring herself to do.

_"Why are you so afraid of your parents?!"_

She remembered Dipper asking her that. And she honestly thought that she had figured it out. That she had conquered those fears. But in hindsight, and with the conversation she just had, she was starting to realize that it hadn't been so simple. She was still afraid. Not entirely, but enough. She stared at the card, feeling an intense urge to call. Unfortunately, the fear of what could go wrong pacified that urge.

For a minute, she could almost hear one side of her brain begging her to tell Wayne. Tell anybody. Hopefully, by the end of the week, the other side would listen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to note, Batman here is voice by Bruce Greenwood, who voiced him in Young Justice. Nightwing is voiced by Scott Menville here. The Gravity Falls characters have their regular voices.


	3. The Billyionaire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On nights like these, you're bound to find friends here and there. In rare cases though, people find love on the ballroom floor. That... does not happen to Pacifica here. If you ask her, she found out who she loved before this whole thing even started. Unfortunately, some people just can't take a hint, and try to claim her like a prize to be won. Others can't help but truly fall head over heels for her. Sometimes beauty can be a curse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are- Pacifica's night continues and another guest on our list comes face to face with her.

The afternoon slowly dragged on as more people began pouring into the main ballroom. Pacifica was a bit surprised at how many people were already at the party.

By this point, other areas of the mansion had started opening up. While the main ballroom housed the dance floor and all of the food, the courtyard was providing entertainment. Numerous comedians, musicians and singers were lined up in the schedule, and guests were already spectating the acts. Pacifica also noticed a door leading to a large art room, with various pieces from all over the world.

Too bad she couldn't take part in any of that. No, Pacifica was forced to simply sit at a table and look like some kind of trophy. Though at this point she wasn't really surprised. Ever since the Northwest party incident she had become overly aware of how much her father valued her as a testament to his high status rather than his own flesh and blood. Her mother wasn't much better, being a passive yes-woman type of wife, and she seemed to care about her daughter's wellbeing as much as her husband.

She would like to say that she didn't care too much, but it hurt. It honestly hurt that her own parents saw her as nothing more than a tool for their own reputation. It hurt when she realized that at one point, she was on the path to take their place and become as heartless and self-obsessed as them. It hurt that she felt more comfortable with people completely unrelated to her.

Not that she hated her newfound friends, of course. If anything, they were the best thing to happen to her in a long time. Wendy had almost become like a big sister to her. Soos wasn't the wisest of individuals but he'd only truly feel bad if he didn't make you smile by the end of the day. The Grunkles were an interesting duo of old guys. Even though Stan liked to con people, he cared about the ones close to him. And Ford was always excited to show everyone the scientific stuff he worked on.

Mabel had continued to be Pacifica's rival, but their rivalry was on far friendlier terms than it used to be. Things could get heated, sure, but their competitions were harmless to themselves and others. Besides, nothing against Mabel, but Pacifica was clearly the one with better fashion sense. Still, she couldn't deny Mabel was still really innovative with her styles.

And then there was Dipper… She sighed.

Dipper Pines, the boy who used to hate her guts. Way back when, where Mabel had chosen not to hold a grudge, Dipper despised how she treated his sister. Any time they had met, they'd always fly into a battle of insults, usually having to do with her hair, and him being a dork. Nowadays, she couldn't really blame him. He was trying to stick up for his sister, after all.

But then, that night happened. Amazing how one ghost could change everything about your life in one night (though to her credit, at least she didn't need four like that old guy from that Christmas story). She still wasn't quite sure what happened during that party that caused them to warm up to each other quickly. They had started the night with their usual shtick of taking jabs at one another, but ended the night laughing together, and enjoying each other's presence. Maybe it was the near-death experience both of them had, or the adrenaline from all the running.

She hadn't seen much of him or Mabel after that. Or anyone really. Her father had been furious at how "terrible" the night had gone even though it had been the best party yet, and grounded her for the rest of the summer. If that weren't bad enough, some three-dimensionally challenged mad demon decided to plunge the town into an apocalypse. And the less details she remembered during that time, the better. She'd finally met up with the twins then, but everything that had happened had… left her in a foul mood, to put it nicely. She acted much like she did before, bossy and a bit hostile. She wasn't proud of it, but Mabel didn't hold it against her, and surprisingly neither did Dipper. When all that was done, the summer ended with the twins celebrating their birthday and going back home, her family having a "financial crisis", and Pacifica left to wonder what direction she was going to head in.

She gave her answer the next summer when she started hanging out with them a lot more, tricking her parents by saying she would be with her "school friends". Thus, she was finally able to meet up with Dipper once again. They turned into fast friends, and she joined him on his adventures whenever she got the chance. When Mabel went off to have her own adventures with Candy and Grenda, she'd often stay behind with him and whatever he was dealing with. They still had their verbal battles with each other, but they were based more on playful quips than biting insults.

The summer after that, Dipper and Mabel found themselves trying their damn best to make sure she could hang with them. Using their knowledge of the town's weirdness, they'd bust her out when she was under lock and key. That they would go out of their way to get her made her realize just how close their friendship had gotten.

But the summer before now, things had started to get complicated. One day, while Mabel was dealing with her own thing involving "vengeful unicorns", or something like that, Pacifica stayed behind with Dipper on a haunted factory case. There was a lot of running involved, and maybe some screaming. But that wasn't what had made things weird, oddly enough. Rather, it was the conversation they had at Susan's later.

_"Still can't believe how violent they got after we said we liked ketchup." Pacifica tilted her head._

_"Yeah, it's an issue when you own a Horseradish factory. They were rivals with an old ketchup factory, but it was a one-sided battle cause… well, Horseradish."_

_"Hey, you can do some great things with Horseradish. Especially when it comes to cocktail sauce. But you just can't slather it over everything like they suggested. Like, what the heck even is fried Horseradish? How do you even fry that? The cook in me is crying."_

_He pulled out some files detailing the rivalry. "The last records say the company tanked, so I'm guessing the triplet owners lost it… and judging by the horseradish on their ghostly forms, they all fell into one of their own vats."_

_"Eugh. That has to be the grossest way to go."_

_Dipper snickered. "Heh. You're making that face again."_

_"What? Am not." Pacifica denied._

_"You did the "eugh" and everything."_

_She smiled. "No way. You're imagining things."_

_"Really? Then why are you so defensive about it?"_

_"Because a certain supernatural mystery dork likes to tease me about it." She replied, though it was playful._

_Dipper raised his eyebrow. "Hey, I may be the mystery dork, but you're the one going on adventures with him."_

_She shrugged. "Touché." But following the dork was something she took pride in. If anything, she felt like she needed to go out of her way to see him. Her days just weren't complete nowadays if she didn't see him… she needed to look into his dark brown eyes and see him smile at her._

_… w-wait, no. She just wanted to see him in general is all. That was it._

_He pointed his fork at her. "Still, I wouldn't have known to look at the records in the first place if you hadn't suggested it. I was so sure they were vengeful workers of some kind. Never even thought they were the owners of the place."_

_"Aw come on, it's only cause my dad owns the mudflap factory."_

_"Don't sell yourself short, Paz, you're a certified business wiz. I know you've been studying that kind of stuff. You knew extensively all the business terms those ghosts were shouting about. And let's not forget who was the one that actually convinced them to go to the afterlife willingly." Paz blushed. "Telling them to become employees of hell and using their horseradish as a torture method... I'd consider that a really smart move."_

_And there he was, praising her again. She still didn't think it was that impressive, he was the smart one after all. That didn't mean she didn't feel good getting praise from him. He was kind, and caring, and when he complimented her it… it made her flutter inside…_

_…B-but that was just something he did for everyone he cared about. No need to get so worked up about it._

_Dipper got up. "You know what? I'm ordering you a slice of pie. You deserve it."_

_"Come on, Dipper, you don't need to do that."_

_"Oh come on, it's your recipe! We both know you love it! You even gave it to Lazy Susan so you could have it when you were too tired to cook! So, too bad. Pie for you."_

_Pacifica chuckled. She still didn't think it was necessary. After all, Dipper was the one who got them out of most scrapes. Sure, he'd be scared, anyone would be, but he'd always brave through his fears to get everyone on the monster hunt to safety. Like in the factory, when they were surrounded by the three ghosts. He had used Mabel's (borrowed) grappling hook to shoot a line to the ceiling. Pacifica remembered how he'd dropped some important notes for his journal, just to make sure she wouldn't be left behind… and that wasn't the only time._

_She drifted off into thought about it. Dipper was always the most determined to get her out of her parents house. She loved how much he wanted to help her. How he wanted to show her the world and all the weirdness it had to offer. She loved the exciting adventures they went on. She loved showing him all the new recipes she found from cooking competitions and famous chefs. She loved seeing her favorite symphonies, side by side with him. And she loved rocking out with him to his favorite metal bands (even if she didn't personally see the appeal of all of them by herself). That he could stand in the face of danger, yet still be as compassionate to those who needed it. And if she could indulge, his muscles were quite firm after years of mystery solving. She'd had the chance to feel them earlier when he was escaping with the grappling hook. She hoped Dipper hadn't seen her blush. Remembering she was still hanging with him, she pushed that thought out of her head to rid herself of another blush. She looked to Dipper to see if he noticed, but he was still waiting for her pie. She sighed in relief, and drifted back into her thoughts. Though... while she was happy to spend time with him, she couldn't help but feel... upset. He was going to go back home soon. And it would be another nine months before she got to see him again. Until then, it was back to dealing with vengeful schoolmates and handling her father's crap. She wouldn't mind spending more time with him beyond summer. In fact, she'd quite love that too._

_Just then, a realization clicked in her mind. Pacifica's eyes slowly widened as she noticed that her thoughts in the last half hour had a recurring theme to them. Specifically, one word in particular._

_Love._

_"Oh no." She thought to herself._

It was at that point that she had realized she had fallen in love with him. Pacifica supposed it wasn't out of nowhere. She had been hanging out with him and his adorable nerdiness for a good few summers now, and only got closer to him as time went on. His antics were probably drilling into her heart since the end of that first summer.

And yet, it confused her at first. She couldn't get to sleep that one night, wondering how Dipper of all people managed to win her heart without even knowing it. Needless to say, she had to figure things out- Paz kept her feelings under wraps for a while until she knew what she wanted to do about it.

That was what spring break was supposed to be for. Pacifica wanted to confess this week (or at least try), but instead she was stuck on an island resort, millions of miles away, "living it up" with the rich and famous. And she couldn't even do anything on that island to pass the time, being under close watch by her father.

Oh well. At least she got to meet Mr. Wayne. He seemed like a pleasant man. With any luck, she could meet other people who had some heart…

***ahem***

Pacifica's thoughts ceased as she heard someone clear their throat. A young boy was standing right in front of her. He seemed to be around her age, and he was dressed incredibly fancy. Definitely trying to impress someone. And judging by the fact she was the only girl within his immediate vicinity, she could guess who that someone was.

"I couldn't help but notice that you were over here all by yourself." He strolled around the table until he was right next to her. "Such a beautiful girl shouldn't be alone on a night like this."

"Yeah, well, it happens sometimes. I think I'm fine, though." She replied, hoping he would get the hint.

"Nonsense, you shouldn't be on your own. Luckily, I'm here now to keep you company." Oh goody. That response alone told her how much he thought of himself as a Casanova. He clearly wouldn't be getting any hints of any kind.

The situation was beginning to make her uncomfortable. "That's… nice, but I don't even know your name."

"Charles Wright. The heir to Scimitar Weapons Industries." He gestured to her. "And you need no introduction, Pacifica Northwest. Your father's recent accomplishments have made your family very noticeable lately."

Great. Another bad side effect of Dad's "comeback". An increase in guys wanting to woo her. Not that it wasn't expected, she did look amazing after all. But she only had her eyes on one boy right now. "I can guarantee you that I'm quite okay. Good bye." She asserted. It wasn't so much a hint, more like a sign post to the face.

"And I guarantee you'll be even better with me here." He put on a smile that told Pacifica " _I'm trying really hard to look seductive and I don't know that it's way too obvious_ ".

This was getting tiresome. Pacifica had to think of a way to get rid of this douche before he ruined her night anymore. Taking a quick look around the room (disguised as an unimpressed "hmph"), she scouted the room for possible escape routes or distractions. After a few seconds, a unnoticeable grin grew on her face.

"Come now, Pacifica… can we get to know each other? A girl of your elegance would have much to talk about with a man of my stature."

Pacifica faked being slightly interested. "Well… I would, but I'm feeling somewhat parched. A dry throat is no way to carry a conversation."

"Allow me, my dear. I'll fetch you a drink." He insisted, heading off to the refreshment table. And right through a thick crowd of people. As soon as he pushed his way through, Pacifica immediately stood up and sped off into a large group of people herself. She didn't care if her father got a little miffed, she wasn't sticking around to wait for Narcissus himself to come back.

Thinking about the fake task she sent him on, it irked her a bit. He left to go get her some punch… but the way he hurriedly left to go get it told her a lot about his intentions. To him, it was a simple stepping stone to getting her into bed. By itself it wasn't anything to get that worked up over, but it reminded her of that day. Dipper got her a piece of pie because he wanted her to feel good, not himself. Strange how such small details could make her miss him.

Hmph. Well, she wouldn't be missing Mr. "I'm-so-amazing" at least, that's for sure.

…

…

…

 _"…wait a minute…"_ A stray thought crossed her mind. Had there really been only one guy taking interest in her? Once more she decided to take quick glances around the room. Surely enough, her instinct had been right. She had spotted more than several guys ogling her, all the while trying not to make themselves obvious.

Pacifica began walking even faster, cursing her good looks for betraying her.

* * *

_30 minutes earlier…_

"Rotten, spotlight-hugging useless dullards…." A young boy mumbled to himself, fixing his small tux as his limo took him up to the Whimsley estate. "I bust them out of jail, get them awesome equipment, and hand them vengeance on Ben Tennyson on a silver platter, and how do they repay me? By trying to steal leadership of my team, and doing their best to cook me when I don't comply! Honestly, it's like working with neanderthals!"

The stone-faced teenager with a short dress beside him spoke up. "Agreed, sir. But you shouldn't worry about those two now. You came here to relax, not work yourself up even more, Mr. Billions."

"Mazuma, please, I think I deserve to rant just a bit about that nonsense." The last thing Billy Billions wanted was to see those dunces ever again. If he never saw them again, it would be too soon. "But yeah… you're right. This is my vacation. A time to relax and meet new rich villain friends! No more worrying this week. Best of all, I can relish the thought that Tennyson could never even hope to get into a place like this!"

"That's the spirit, Master Billions!"

"Alright, now remember Mazuma: We can't do anything explicitly villainous or heroic while we're on this trip. Island security will permit you and your functions so long as it's only for my sake, and my sake alone. And of course, my sake does not include said villainous activity."

Mazuma nodded robotically. "Of course, sir. I'm running through Island rules. I will set up countermeasures to prevent either of us from breaking any you may forget."

Billy gave her a look at the "you may forget" part. "I swear, I may not have programmed sass into you, but it almost feels like you have it sometimes."

"Apologies, Master Billions."

Billy waved his hand, not caring anymore. He noticed the Whimsley out the window. "Ah, almost there! That place is gonna be filled to the brim with my type of people, Mazuma."

Mazuma still analyzing files, replied. "It will be hard to impress them, Master Billions."

"Impress them? Ha! Please. I don't grovel or beg to people, Mazuma. Especially in light of recent events. If anything, I'll make sure they'll have to impress me!" He clenched his fist in pride. "And no one on this island is gonna change that."

* * *

"Mr. Billions! I see you made it!" Horace Whimsley said to Billy, pulling out his hand.

Billy shook it very pridefully. "Well, obviously. A party like this can't be devoid of my grandness you know." Billy suddenly turned his head, thinking he heard someone snicker at him.

"Right…" He rolled his eyes while the kid wasn't looking. "Now, Mr. Billions, I'm sure you're aware of our rules, right?"

Billy turned back to Whimsley. "Honestly, Mr. Whimsley, I'm appalled you would assume the worst of me." He ignored the "really?" look the host gave him.

A grin came over Whimsley's face, as if he remembered something funny. "Well, regardless, I know someone's definitely keeping their eye on you tonight, along with my security. So behave."

The heck did that mean? Oh well, Billy had other things to focus on. "Mazuma, search for a group filled with tech savvy individuals like myself." He picked up a glass of non-alcoholic punch from a servant's plate.

Mazuma's eyes begin scanning the surrounding area, before stopping on a group of five individuals. "Those five are of various companies specializing in technological fields, including Scimitar Weapons, Farson Inc., Metropolitan Mechs, and Wayne Enterprises."

Billy nearly spat out his drink at that. Bruce Wayne of all people was here?! "Bruce Wayne? He'll surely be impressed by my dominant personality! It's the perfect group to interact with."

Mazuma raised an eyebrow. "Forgive me sir, but I thought you weren't going to "grovel"?"

"Oh, come on Mazuma. I'm not kissing up to anybody, I'm just showing them how amazing I am! Besides, I know the works of the other four. It'll be easy to take those fellas down a notch." He rebutted, walking towards the group. Mazuma merely shrugged.

As they got closer, Billy could hear Wayne speaking to the other four. "I'm sorry, but I'm really not interested. All departments are too busy on other things anyhow." He had been mostly saying this to a chubby one, whom Billy recognized as the owner of Farson Inc.

"All I'm asking for is a bit of research notes, Mr. Wayne."

"Yes, but from the medical and biotech branches, Mr. Farson. You've given me very little reason as to why a weapons industry would need medical info. I'm sorry, but no."

"Bah…"

"Well then Mr. Wayne, perhaps you could assist Scimitar Weapons with our latest police weaponry. Nothing lethal, by the way. We could use some expertise from some of your branches." This one came from a middle-aged man, whom Billy knew as Johnathan Wright. Next to him was his wife. Billy took this as an opportunity to intervene.

"If your previous models are anything to go by, then you need his help more than you think, Mr. Wright." Wright jumped a bit from the sudden entrance of the small teen.

A little miffed by his remark, Wright was more confused by his presence than anything. "…And… who are you exactly?"

"Billy Billions." Before Billy could even react, Wayne spoke up instead. "Son of Caru and Janatha Billions of Bellwood. I've heard of your work. Including your most recent work." Eugh, not good. Had word about that really gotten around so quickly? He'd thought it'd be mostly local knowledge at this point.

"Where have I heard that name before…" Farson Inc.'s CEO was lost in thought.

"Ah, yes, the well-known philanthropists. Always travelling the world from what I hear." That came from the CEO of Metropolitan Mechs. "Which begs the question… where are your parents, little boy?" She narrowed her eyes at him.

Billy clenched his fists. "Unimportant. They're not here, that's all you have to know." He didn't notice Wayne frown slightly. "Then again it's not as if they need to be here. Despite what you may think, I'm not a _little_ boy. I'm seventeen, thank you. I am perfectly capable of attending this event on my own."

"Seventeen? Please."

"I agree with that sentiment." Wright proclaimed. "After all, you certainly sound like a young child who has no idea what he's talking about."

"Do I, Mr. Wright?" Billy pretended to go into thought. "If I remember right, your company's weaponry has been known to malfunction constantly. Now, in a town like yours, filled to the brim with crime, one would speculate that might be intentional. But don't worry, I don't assume such bad implications Mr. Wright. Because if one were to look closely at your products, they would realize it's more incompetence than anything." Wright was struggling to keep himself from bursting out in anger, drawing the group's attention from Wayne, who just shook his head. Billy simply smirked.

"I remember now!" The Farson Inc. CEO suddenly shouted, taking Billy by surprise. "Billy Billions, the boy who came back from another dimension, stuck in the body of a child! Hahaha- Your body doesn't age!" Billy's eyes widened.

Hearing this, Wright's anger slowly changed to laughter of his own. His wife and the owner of Metropolitan Mechs soon followed suit. "Oh, now that is priceless. Here you are talking down to me about weapons, and yet you can't even figure out how to turn yourself back to normal!" He continued to laugh. Billy was beginning to get infuriated.

"That's not the same thing you dolt! Building a machine to correct my temporal disfigurement is a hell of a lot more complicated than making a damn peashooter!" This didn't stop them from laughing more.

"Temporal disfigurement! What a hoot!" Billy was getting very close to building a makeshift death ray at this point, and that only increased as Wright continued. "And what's this young lady? I thought she was real at first, but then I noticed the eyes! What, did you have to build yourself a babysitter?" Now Mazuma was angry. She could just fire one eye laser, right at this moment…

Wayne stepped in front of them, preventing anything drastic from happening. "Mr. Billions, perhaps it's best to leave. After all, you did provoke the situation."

"I… what? I'm the smartest out of any of these idiots!"

Wright got a bit angry again. "Really now-"

Wright was cut off by Wayne. "However, I do believe this returned pettiness is unwarranted for a frustrating problem of yours." The others finally stopped, clearly not wanting to look bad in front of him. "Maybe it's best if you two avoided each other for the remainder of the weekend."

Billy looked at him for a few seconds, scrutinizing his face. "…Very well, Mr. Wayne. I'll be on my way. After all, I don't want to do anything that will prevent me from enjoying this island's many attractions." He began walking away, Mazuma following. "After the event, however…" He whispered, and Wayne's eyes narrowed.

After getting a good way's away, Billy began ranting. "The nerve of those assholes… I've got something in store for them for sure once this week is over. They'll see what happens when they make fun of Billy Billions."

"You must relax, sir. As Mr. Wayne said, we should probably not get worked up over insults from those who craft inferior robotics."

"I know." Billy replied, a bit aggravated. "Still, I'll have to thank Mr. Wayne for shutting them up, at least."

"And if I may add, Master Billions…" Billy turned his head to her. "Attempting to exact vengeance outside the resort may attract the attention of Tennyson and the plumbers."

Billy snapped his fingers, just now remembering that. "Drat! You're right. Outside the resort, they'll be keeping a close eye on me. Those ingrates might as well of gotten off scot-free." Billy pinched the bridge of his nose. "Oh well. Minus this aggravation, I still got the rest of this week to have a whole plethora of fun. Not even Tennyson can annoy me now."

"Man, these things are delicious!" Another voice rang out from Billy's right, freezing him in his tracks. Mazuma's eyes widened. Both of the recognized that voice very well.

"Should you really be consuming so many of those?"

"Yeah, you're gonna give yourself a stomachache."

"I can't help it! There's something about pigs in blankets that makes them taste so good! I think it's the buttery croissant they wrap the little dogs in."

Billy just stood there, trying to comprehend the voices partaking in this conversation. The familiar voices continued.

"I am confused. Are they dogs or pigs? I had assumed that eating domestic canines was frowned upon."

"No Rook, it's just a weird name they've gotten. They're made from pigs. No dogs in those sausages."

"I see. Still, perhaps you should slow down?"

"What, did you and Julie want some?"

"Eh… I think I'll pass this time Ben."

The last word echoed in Billy's mind. _Ben. Ben. Ben. Ben. BEN._

_No._

_No, no._

_"No no no no no no…"_ Billy kept repeating in his head as he stormed through the crowd, Mazuma trailing behind. _"No, please, no, for the love of whatever god there was, NO-"_

As he emerged from the sea of people, he was distraught to find his worst-case scenario come true. A brown-haired teen with a green and black shirt, and a futuristic looking watch, scarfing down hors d'oeuvres. Or to put it simply, the one and only Ben Tennyson.

"Tennyson?!" Billy shouted in disbelief, which caught said hero's attention. "What are you doing here?!"

Ben nearly choked on the small sausages he had been eating. His girlfriend Julie, the one wearing a pink dress, handed him a glass of water. "You?! Didn't we arrest you a month ago?"

"I… apologize." His cat-like humanoid partner, Rook, spoke up. "It seems it slipped my mind, but I had meant to tell you that Billy was released early because he had paid bail. But I had not anticipated him to be here."

Billy crossed his arms. "Yeah, well, join the club catboy."

"Revonnahgander."

"Whatever. Now can someone explain to me how you three rags managed to get into a place full of riches?!" Billy pointed his finger at Ben. "Hero or no, no one can get in here without being invited, and to be invited, you have to be rich! The superhero angle doesn't cut it Tennyson, so unless you somehow won the lottery, I fail to see how you got here."

Ben smirked. "Thing is Billy, we did get invited. True, being a superhero alone doesn't get you free access, but you can still get in if you were invited by someone else who was invited."

"That is true. Part of the reason why superheroes cannot simply come in is because not all of them have the budget to participate in the establishments of the island. But an old friend of Ben's has invited us along with him, and is funding our recreational activities here, so long as we agree not to take part in Plumber or Superhero business during our stay."

Billy arched an eyebrow. "Really? Sloppy, idiotic Tennyson managed to make a blueblood friend? Who the hell would invite someone like you to a high-class event?"

"Why not ask him yourself?" Ben pointed behind Billy. Looking behind him, Billy discovered that his first day here only kept getting worse.

"Eddie GrandSmith?!"

"Hey Ben! I was just talking to Whimsley and-" Eddie stopped, noticing the diminutive Billions in his path. "Oh. Billions. Just when I was hoping I wouldn't see you again."

"Of course someone like you would invite Ben."

"Well, his team had been working hard, and I hadn't caught up with Ben in a while." He shrugged. "Then again, you wouldn't get how good of a person he is, would you?"

"Hardly. My unaging body will support that."

The group behind him groaned. Julie came to the defense of her boyfriend. "Billy, all of us are really sorry about what happened to you, but that's bullshit. What happened to you was your own fault."

"I agree." Rook stepped forward as well. "If anything, Ben would have more of a reason to be angry with you. Had you succeeded, Ben would have been transported to Dimension 12 with his family none the wiser."

"Yeah, well it didn't. Your stupid diamond skull reflected it back at me, so I'm the one who's rightfully angry."

Ben stopped Rook and Julie before they could continue. "Guys, just give it up. I've been through this with him several times before, and he just won't listen." Ben then focused on Billy himself. "However, he certainly is my responsibility in one way. I'll be keeping my eye on you Billy."

"Newsflash Tennyson, you don't need to. This island's security already keeps close watch of heroes and superheroes. I couldn't plan anything even if I tried. And you couldn't "go hero" without getting kicked out either."

"He doesn't need to." GrandSmith interrupted. "There is such a thing as "reporting", you know."

Billy realized this must have been what Whimsley had meant. He threw his hands up in the air. "Unbelievable. Just another thing you've decided to ruin for me, Mr. 10."

"You mean like when you tried to ruin me by turning the public against me just last month?"

"And it would of worked had those geezers not-" Billy would have gone on, had it not been for the fact that someone bumped into him and nearly pushed him over. Righting himself, he turned to see a teen girl, quickly walking away. "Hey, watch where you're going!"

When the girl turned around, however, Billy felt as if he had been hit by a truck. It was almost as if the world around him blurred as he looked at the girl in front of him. She had beautiful blond hair, that went down past her shoulders. Even from a few feet away, he could tell it was soft by how shiny it was. Her blue eyes sparkled, and Billy could swear they were as blue as the ocean. She had a dazzling purple dress, which emphasized certain… parts of her figure. Needless to say, Billy was dumbstruck.

"Sorry." She said to him, in a very beautiful voice. "I just need to be somewhere quickly."

 _"Take me with you."_ Billy thought, lost in her beauty. What came out instead was less comprehensible. "I… you…uh-uhm… s'okay." The girl smiled, then left through the next crowd. Just like that, she was gone as quickly as she had arrived.

"Great, what are you gonna do now? Zap her with a kid ray?" Billy jumped when he heard his nemesis talk again.

"H-huh?!"

"I would not put it past him." Rook added. "Considering how unreasonable he is." Wait, use a kid ray on her? Never. Such an angelic person couldn't be inconvenienced with something like that. She was amazing. He had to find her. He could start in the direction she had gone in…

"Maybe we should just stay close to him, just in case." Julie recommended.

 _"Oh right. I can't go anywhere with those jerks around."_ He thought for a second, wondering how he could distract him. An idea formed in his mind. "Mazuma!"

"Yes sir?" He gestured for her to listen closely, and whispered in her ear. "Of course." Her eyes turned red, and she walked towards Ben and Rook.

"The hell are you up to, Billions?" Ben said, getting in a defensive stance, Rook doing the same.

She stopped right in front of them, raised her arms, and…

"Mr. Tennyson and Rook! I offer a hug of apology in response to our behavior!"

Ben and Rook were caught off guard by this, and lowered their arms a bit. Both of them replied in unison. "Wha-?"

Seeing her chance, Mazuma wrapped them in her arms lightning fast, and proceeded to give them that hug. A hug that held them in place with great strength.

"Grk!" Ben said, losing a bit of air in the process. Neither he nor Rook could get out unless they resorted to using the watch or Rook's proto-tool, both of which were forbidden and not on person respectively. Julie and Eddie were doing their best to get the two out, with no success.

As the two of them were being crushed by "affection", Ben noticed one thing missing from this scenario- a certain rich boy who had it in for him. "Crud… he's gon-ack!" Ben said as Mazuma finally released the two of them. "It was a distraction…" He said in a daze.

"So it would seem." Rook said in the same state.

Julie cringed as she knelt down beside the two. "Yikes. That might hurt in the morning."

Billy chuckled as he made his way past various people and groups. That was almost too easy. A little payback at Ben and a chance to find the mystery girl. Maybe this night would begin to look up after all!

* * *

Or maybe not. He'd been searching for about ten minutes now, and couldn't find a trace of her. He was beginning to get a little discouraged. And he had such high hopes this night would turn around…

Getting a bit cramped inside the crowd of people, he made his way to the "outskirts" of the ballroom to get a fresh breath. If security wasn't so tight, he could get a cambot to look around. Unfortunately, he couldn't and it seemed he would have to give up…

That is, until he noticed movement from behind a pillar a little bit away. "Could that be…?"

Sure enough, as he got closer, he found it to be the same girl. Why on earth was she hiding? Well, she hadn't seemed to notice him yet, so it was time for him to work his charismatic magic and go introduce himself.

As he approached, he noticed she was apparently on the lookout for something. Perhaps a friend or…? Later. "Hello!" The girl jumped a bit, not expecting him. As soon as she looked at him though, his confidence seemed to crumble. "O-oh, sorry, I was just wanting to say hi, cause I didn't before, a-and well, here I am, so um.. uh…"

"…You wanted to say hi?"

"Yes! Yeah, hello, hi, how are you, I-I-I mean, I'm… Hello! Uh, not that I am hello, my name is Billy's… I mean, my name is Billion Billys, I mean Billious Bins, I-I mean uh…" The girl was just staring at him, likely wondering what was happening. He cleared his throat. "What I'm trying to say is, my name is Billy Billions."

The girl was silent for a second, and then slowly smiled. "Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm Pacifica Northwest." She offered a handshake. Billy's legs nearly melted as he shook it. "So… not to sound rude, but can I ask what you need?"

"Me? Well I, um, uh… I wanted to apologize. I was a bit hostile earlier."

"Oh, that? It's fine honestly. I should've been more careful not to knock you over kid."

"Kid?" Usually Billy would get mad, but here he was worried instead. "Oh! No no no. I'm older than I look."

"Really?" Pacifica asked, eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, honestly! Truthfully! Cross my heart and hope to die! Well, not really, but you know…"

Pacifica chuckled. "Right." She looked back toward the center of the ballroom, but stiffened as she did so. "Shit." She scooted farther behind the pillar.

"What's wrong?" Billy inquired.

"Hurry, pretend you don't see me." She whispered to him. That would be hard to for him, but he did it anyway. He whistled and look at random places around the room, trying to act natural. Another young man strolled by, giving Billy a quick glance. He kept going though, paying him no heed.

"Did the teenage guy with a cup of punch go by?" Pacifica asked him.

"Uh, yeah."

"Good." She emerged from the pillar, but not completely. "That jerk has been trying to cozy up to me. He just won't take a hint."

"Have you tried leaving the ballroom?"

"Let's just say I'm kinda stuck in this room for now and leave it at that."

Billy looked back at the retreating figure, and pondered for a moment. A few seconds later, he received another great idea. "What if he was the one who went to another room?"

"I doubt it. He seems pretty confident that I'll be here for a while. And he's kind of right."

"But not if he sees you go somewhere else." Billy rebutted.

Pacifica raised an eyebrow again. "So… lure him away? How would you do that?"

"Give me a sec." He pressed a button on his wristwatch. Only a few seconds later, Pacifica was stunned by the arrival of another person, a tall blonde girl. "Uh, before we go on… Mazuma, our friends are still getting "refreshments", right?"

"Indeed sir."

"Alright then! Pacifica, my android assistant Mazuma, Mazuma, my new friend Pacifica."

"Android?"

"Oh yeah, I'm a robotics expert. I designed her myself."

Pacifica wasn't sure what to think of that. "Uh…"

Billy seemed to realize what he said, and struggled to correct himself. "I mean, to be my bodyguard! She protects me and stuff."

"And I help get him required items from the top shelves." Mazuma added.

"Yeah, that too!" In his haste, he only realized after he said that how embarrassing it sounded. He pinched the bridge of his nose again. "Ugh…"

"So…" Pacifca wanted to change the subject. "How will she help us?"

"Easy. Watch this!" He whispered in Mazuma's ear, and she nodded. Her eyes locked onto Pacifica (which made her feel a bit nervous), and began transforming. Her hairstyle changed, and her dress became longer. Before long, Pacifica was looking at… herself.

"Huh. That could work."

"You're… taking this a bit better than I thought." Billy noted.

"Let's just say I've experienced weirder." Billy and Mazuma-Paz looked at each other, and merely shrugged.

"Um… so I probably need to keep an eye on Mazuma, to make sure no funny business happens… will I see you later tonight?"

"Sure. Anyone who can help me ditch jerkish creeps are good in my book. After all, you already did proclaim me as your friend."

Billy's eyes widened. "Oh s-s-sorry, I didn't mean…" He was stopped when Pacifica put a hand on his shoulder.

"It's fine. Thank you, Billy."

Billy was dumbstruck again. "No… no problem."

Pacifica eyes caught sight of a certain someone once again. "Crap, here he comes!" She nearly dove back behind the pillar, and Billy snapped out of his stupor.

"Alright Mazuma, initiate plan "Fakeout Lure"! I'll follow right behind what's-his-face."

"Charles Wright." Pacifica said from her spot.

"Yeah, Charles Wright!"

"Yes sir!" She left towards on of the large exits, making sure she got Wright's attention. While waiting for him to notice her, Billy suddenly realized what Pacifica said.

"…Wait, what was his name?"

"Charles Wright. His dad is the guy that owns Scimitar Weapons."

"Pacifica! Wait, my darling!" Said heir to Scimitar Weapons shouted in the distance.

Billy looked back at the young man as he chased after Mazuma. He grew an evil grin. "Well. I might have even more fun with this than I thought." He muttered as he followed Wright through the exit.

Pacifica watched Billy disappear, finally giving her a chance to relax. That took out one of her potentially annoying followers. The rest hadn't made a move, so she could only assume they were nervous or that they decided they were "unimpressed" with her.

She was glad she was able to make a new friend, despite her being 99% sure the kid had a crush on her (now she knew how Wendy felt with Dipper). Regardless, he'd been a pretty nice guy. She'd have to make sure to find him again, somehow.

She considered going back to her seat, but by now her dad would have already noticed she was gone, so there was little point. So, she might as well go see what else the night had to offer. Especially now that Wright couldn't bother her. But if he did manage to bother her again, she knew she would have to be very firm, and get him off her back once and for all. She already loved someone else, and no cocky daddy's boy was going to change that.

But for now, a glass of punch. Ironically, trying to avoid the guy actually did make her thirsty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Our Ben 10 set of characters of course have their actors from the original franchise, before the reboot. Yuri Lowenthal, Vyan Pham, Bumper Robinson, and of course, Aziz Ansari. Now, you may notice some... anachronisms here, especially you Ben 10 fans, and well... I'll only say that I have grievances with Omniverse and leave it at that. Hopefully that doesn't end up interfering with my writing; let me make it clear that I don't waste my time on my stories bashing shows or characters. In fact, Omniverse still technically happened, although as you'll see there's some major differences.


	4. The Goth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They say opposites attract. Unfortunately, that's not necessarily true in real life, especially with relationships. Truthfully, people are more complicated than that, and those with surface level differences and likes may never get along. But under certain circumstances, this phrase can be true. Friendships can form not through the clashing of personalities, but through how the individuals treat one another. Something Pacifica can attest to when thinking on old friends, and meeting new ones.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Give it up for guest 3! Guest 3, everybody! Also, I've tried my best to describe fashion, but I'm going to have to go with generalized statements in this chapter at certain points because I am not a fashion expert.

After getting a small drink, Pacifica had decided to see what was happening in the courtyard first. Maybe she'd finally be able to have fun there.

The courtyard was astonishing, to say the least. Flowers of all kinds were growing in a carefully placed formation surrounding an area full of seats. Various fountains of water were placed in this garden border, all flowing in intricate ways. What happened to be most astonishing though, were a patch of trees on the far side of the area. Pacifica didn't know how he did it, but Whimsley had managed to grow those several trees in a way that formed a stage. It must have taken years to do it… or months if advanced with science.

Currently on stage was a jazz singer and his musical backup. He sang with great emotion, with many audience members being brought to tears. Despite changing many things about herself, she had always preferred calm and slow music like this, and the quiet ambience that surrounded it. There had been that phase with Sev'ral Timez, but luckily, she grew out of that. Especially when Mabel told her they were actual clones bred in a lab, which made it waaaay too creepy (she was never sure what she saw in them). Oh well. Point being that she was more suited to styles like jazz and orchestrated music.

In fact, she still appreciated many things like this. She wanted to be a better person, yes, but she couldn't help but feel attracted to the lavish and fancy. Whether it be her leaning towards high fashion or her preference for fine dining, she'd enjoy it greatly.

However, her preferences would often make her worry about her personality. Did liking such things make her a pretentious type of person? Was she just naturally meant to be cold and cynical? Was being an awful person in her D.N.A.?

Dipper didn't seem to think so. _"Just because you're your parents' daughter, doesn't mean you have to be like them."_ Another thing she remembered him saying from that one night. Despite him telling her that, it didn't make Paz any less worried about what the rest of the world saw her as. She didn't like thinking about it, so for now she chose to watch the singer.

The jazz singer finished up, and a comedian came up for the next act. His routine was pretty hilarious, and Pacifica found herself laughing plenty of times. Pacifica wondered if all the acts were going to be like this. Searching around for a bit, she managed to find a programme with the complete list of acts that would go through the night. And she'd been pretty spot on: the acts were all highly sophisticated bands, singers, and comedians.

Even though she was right, this knowledge made Pacifica frown. Was it really going to be things so similar to each other all night? She could understand that it was a high-class event, but all of the entertainers listed were all very reserved, highbrow, or unenergetic. It fit her preferences, sure, but even she had her limits. Did no one think this would get boring at some point?

Perhaps this was the line of thinking that kept her from being considered pretentious. That she didn't enjoy such things simply because she was trying to uphold an image. That she could step outside her hobbies and still enjoy herself.

Something that apparently almost no one could do here. She looked over the brochure once more, and yearned for a bit of diversity. She couldn't enjoy what she liked best if it was the only thing she could listen to all night. At times like this, she yearned for the excitement of Mabel's style.

Yes, sometimes that would involve just a little too much glitter and sequins, but give Mabel the right supplies and she could create an awesome high-octane party or event. And when the two of them put their skills together, no one could resist coming to their shindigs.

She thought back to the last party they planned and giggled a bit. Strange how flying pigs, a golden Soos, and a dance-off with attacking monsters were something she didn't consider out of the ordinary. It was a memorable one to be sure.

Even stranger though was Mabel being so willing to let go of the past. Why she considered Pacifica her friend after all the crap she put her through, Paz didn't know, even after the last few years had passed. Sure, almost every girl in town was her victim or pawn at the time, but Pacifica had tried her damned best to humiliate Mabel and dash her hopes any chance she had.

And yet after the golf-people incident (she was still going to sue them), she just dropped it all and went on with her life. And then accepted Paz as a friend almost immediately the first time she asked to hang out with them. It bugged her to no end. She was happy about it, and yet… frustrated at the same time.

See, life hadn't exactly been treating Pacifica as well as Mabel had. In fact, life had been hitting her with hard doses of reality for a while now. And seeing how Mabel could sweep everything under the rug, it only made her wonder why Mabel took their horrible past so well. So on the night of the party, she decided to put the dilemma to rest.

_Pacifica stood by the punch bowl, watching as a group of goblins ran away crying (Who knew they were into disco? Supposedly it fell under their admiration of shiny things.). Mabel, the victor, was currently celebrating by shooting two glitter pistols in the air._

_"Oh yeah! That's what happens when you mess with the Suave Sweater Sister!" Mabel proceeded to take the bowl of punch and splash it on her, letting out another victory scream._

_"Mabel? Mabel!" Pacifica snapped her fingers as she tried to get the girl's attention._

_"Huh, what?" The Pines sister finally snapped out of her dance-off mode. "Oh, hey Paz! Don't worry about the punch, I planned a contingency just for such a thing." She signaled Soos, who ended up bringing out another bowl of punch._

_Pacifica narrowed her eyes. "Does that mean you were planning on dumping it on you from the start, regardless of monster attacks?"_

_"Maaaaaaayybe."_

_"One cannot resist the feeling of being a victorious sports coach. It's like, the best morale boost dudes." Soos said, still gold, before walking away._

_Pacifica chuckled at this, even though she didn't quite understand it. But figuring out that mystery would have to wait. There was still something that needed to be discussed before the night was over._

_"Hey, Mabel, can we talk about something? I can get you some towels while we're at it."_

_"So... what didja want to discuss with ol' Mabes, Paz?" Mabel asked, as she wrapped a towel around her hair, new clothes on._

_Pacifica looked a bit hesitant to start. But she had already brought Mabel down here. She couldn't just turn back now. "Mabel, we're friends, right?"_

_Mabel seemed confused as to why she would even ask that. "Well doi, of course we are! Why wouldn't we be?"_

_"I can think of a few reasons." Pacifica replied._

_Mabel sighed. "Paz, what happened in the past is the past. You're no walking one-dimensional valley girl stereotype anymore. Well, not mostly, anyway. You do still have quite the hankering for fashion..."_

_"Mabel, I can understand people leaving things in the past and letting them be." She sat down on Dipper's bed. "But it feels like it shouldn't be as easy as your trying to make it be."_

_"And who says it can't be?" Mabel asked, beginning to get more serious. "I've had the hatchet buried on our petty rivalry since the first summer we got here. So I don't see how hard it can be." Pacifica didn't look convinced._

_Pacifica snapped. "Well, maybe you shouldn't have let it go like that! Look at all the terrible things I did! I cheated on our first meeting! I almost took Waddles! I tried to humiliate you every chance I got! How can you just overlook all that and accept me as a friend so easily?"_

_"Well how come you want me to hate you again so much? Do you really not want to be my friend?"_

_"No! ...No, it's... it's amazing being your friend. Dipper's too. But I... don't feel like I deserve it."_

_Mabel sat next to her. "Come on, you totally deserve it! Anyone who's gone without a real friend for so long need to experience true friendship! And all the other mushy goodness!" Mabel put her hand on Pacifica's shoulder. "Is there something I'm missing here? I feel like you're not telling me everything."_

_Pacifica was silent for a solid minute before speaking again. "...You... you guys aren't here during the school year. The people in school, the kids I'd been stomping on for years... they haven't been so forgiving."_

_"Oh no..." Mabel said, suspecting where this was going._

_"The first year I went back to school, before I became real friends with you guys, I tried turning my life around. I tried making it up to the kids I've been picking on for about four years. And they were willing to bury the hatchet alright. Right into my face." Pacifica thought back to the terrifying first year. "The popular girls turned on me first. They kicked me out of all their social circles because I wanted to treat the "commoners" with decency."_

_"Well, that's to be expected." Mabel shrugged. "Those guys are usually the worst." She gave Pacifica a smile. "Usually."_

_Pacifica didn't return it. "Everyone else got confused at how differently I was acting at first. They weren't sure what to do about it. But they quickly found out how they wanted to deal with it." Pacifica's eyes became watery. "They started taking advantage of it."_

_"You mean... they made you do stupid things?"_

_"No, no. I'm not that naive. But they did things they knew I wouldn't fight back against." She shuddered as she remembered. "A lot of the boys would pull cruel pranks on me, like stuffing gross things into my locker, or tripping me in the hallway. The girls would start rumors about me online and in person. I don't think anyone ever believed them, but everyone knew it would still... hurt. So they spread them around anyway. Not to mention they started to keep me out of their social circles too. No one would invite me anywhere, no boy would ask me out- not that I wanted them too, but it was telling nonetheless- everyone wanted nothing to do with me."_

_"What about Candy and Grenda?" Mabel was curious about how her other friends had been handling this. "They aren't like that. They've been your friends for as long as I have. Plus, us three have been the misfitty of misfits since the beginning. We don't judge you know."_

_"They helped. As best as they could, at least. Everyone mostly left them alone since they became legends from the Weirdpocalypse."_

_"Weirdmageddon."_

_"Whatever it was. But yeah, everyone thought I was just using them. Candy and Grenda watched my back when they could, but we aren't able to be around each other all the time."_

_Mabel took the towel off and scratched the back of her head. "Imma guess your parents were butts about this too."_

_Pacifica grimaced. "The exact reason I never told them. They would've used it as a chance to tell me off for how I had been acting."_

_Mabel didn't reply. To think people had been treating her this badly... it reminded her that not everyone was as forgiving as her. "I'm sorry Paz. I don't understand why other people can't let it go."_

_"Because you only got the tip of the iceberg. Look, Mabel, as bad as I treated you, and even though you became one of my worst enemies in a matter of days, you got far from the worst I've done." Pacifica looked back at her friend. "It's why I think you shouldn't have been so accepting of me. I've done some pretty bad things. If you had seen me do them in person..."_

_Mabel wasn't sure she wanted to know... but she probably had to. "Uh... just what kind of stuff are talking about here?"_

_"You want an example? Okay, well, there's Suzy Prixley. Wanted to be a journalist since she was a kid. She always spoke her mind about the popular girls in her column in the school newspaper. So one day, I secretly had it so her column would be replaced by a random ramble about how much she liked to... eat paste."_

_"Euh... That is bad... wait, paste?"_

_"Yeah, we were only nine years old. Didn't know why we were able to write a paper though..." Pacifica pondered._

_"That's only one of many questions I'd ask about that, Paz."_

_"Er… not the point. Chalk it up to Gravity Falls weirdness." Mabel shrugged. "Anyway, recently Suzy has been making sure to taking jabs at me in the paper whenever she can. Sometimes the whole column is on me. And she's not even the worst."_

_"I… think I can get the idea." Mabel sighed again. "Look, Paz… I can't deny you were kinda terrible back then. No matter how deep I dig, that hatchet's still gonna be there. And while I was willing to forgive you so quickly, other people take time. That might be my fault though. I'm always ready to make reality as easy as possible, but sometimes it just isn't. It's not gonna be easy showing people you've changed._

_Pacifica hung her head, some tears falling._

_"But don't you think for a second that you don't deserve good friends. Those bozos aren't in the right. They're just holding a grudge. The reason why I never keep grudges, or go out of my way to antagonize anyone is because it's **just. So. Dumb.** It's always dumb. Sure, someone can understand why those jerks are treating you badly, but they aren't justified. They just wanna stay angry and make everything worse and never fix anything because it means they won't get to be angry at you anymore."_

_Pacifica looked on as Mabel continued._

_"Forget those guys Paz. You might not ever satisfy them. But you don't have to anymore. True friends will see how great you actually are without you needing to try so hard to prove it. And I think you'll make new friends someday. Ones that'll see how amazing you are- just like me, my brother, and Wendy… ones that won't keep bringing your past up to haunt you." Mabel finished and gave her a big hug._

_Pacifica hugged her back. "You… think so?"_

_"Of course." Mabel the pulled away excitedly. "And then your new friends can meet us and we can have sleepovers and go on monster hunts and-" She ran over to the window and opened it. "-HAVE PARTIES WHERE WE BEAT LAME GOBLINS ON THE DANCE FLOOR!"_

_Pacifica chuckled as Mabel returned to her perky self. Still, she had to wonder… "How will I know?" Said party animal turned back to her._

_"Whuh? Oh! Trust me Paz, it's all about that feeling in your gut. You'll know when you meet them." She went back over to the bedroom door. "Now, let's get back out there! There's still more night left to party!" She suddenly grew a smug smile. "And get you hooked up with my bro-bro."_

_Pacifica stuttered. "W-what?! No, I'm not ready for that ye-" She slapped her hand over mouth when she realized Mabel had baited her._

_"AHA! I KNEW IT! MY BEST FRIEND AND MY BRO FOR REALZIES THIS TIME!"_

_"Mabel! The window's still open!"_

Luckily, no one had heard that due to the loud music. Unluckily, Pacifica had failed to keep her newfound love for Dipper a secret from Mabel. She imagined her many plans for spring break had actually been ruined because she wouldn't be able to hook the two of them up.

Still, had she made true friends since she had gotten here? Mr. Wayne was more like a concerned adult, and Billy obviously had a crush on her, which might make things weird.

For once, the suave atmosphere actually impeded her focus. Especially now that she felt like experiencing some Mabel craziness. She had to get out of here and find a quieter atmosphere.

However, as she turned to leave, she ended up bumping into someone.

"Oh!" She backed up a bit. "I'm sorry, sir."

"It's no problem young madam. I'm just glad your drink was empty." The man said, pointing at her glass.

"Heh, yeah. I was just on my way out to find a… "calmer" room." She noticed the man had odd snow white hair, tied back into a pony tail, with a matching goatee. He stood tall and straight, and almost seemed regal. It was as if his stature was demanding respect. Something about him also looked familiar.

"Of course. Sometimes even this sophisticated 'air' can be too much on the senses." He said looking around, before his eyes fell back on her. "Say, you look oddly familiar…"

_"Oh no…"_

"Ah yes, I recognize you! You're Preston's daughter, Pacifica!" He grew a bit perplexed. "Odd, you don't resemble him much at all."

Pacifica relaxed a bit. It felt nice to know she didn't look much like him. "Well, I don't mind."

The man snapped his fingers as if remembering something. "Speaking of which, I believe he was looking for you."

Pacifica's eyes widened. "He is?"

"Yes, and he looked as if he was suppressing some intense emotions. Are the two of you doing alright? Is there something going on?"

Pacifica grew very quiet. The man looked on in concern. "I shouldn't. It's… personal." She finally said.

"Oh dear. Are you sure? It seems like keeping quiet will make it worse." She stayed quiet. The man gave her a sincere smile. "My girl, you needn't worry. I'm one of your father's business associates. He's assisting me on the project that's helping your family recover. If anyone can keep a secret, it's me."

Pacifica finally realized where she recognized him. She didn't usually follow her father's "story" on the news, but when she did, she caught quick glances of this man. She didn't remember the name though…

But he seemed nice. Not to mention he was one of her father's partners. Maybe she was wrong about her dad's associates, and it was only Preston that wasn't being trustworthy. She pursed her lips in thought.

"…Well… I'm not supposed to stray far from him." She said. She wouldn't say everything, but just a little would be fine. "My dad's worried I'll mess up and give the family a bad name. He won't even let me go into another room by myself."

The man sighed. "Oh Preston… I keep telling him not to be so worried about his image. But now he's dragging you into it? This isn't very healthy." He knelt down. "Tell you what. I'll convince him to let you off of this unnecessary leash."

Pacifica eyes widened again. "But-"

"I know, I know. But out of the three of his partners, your father trusts me the most. He'll listen to me." He stroked his beard. "Though I don't remember where he is at the moment. I'll have to search for him." The man gasped and looked around the room. "Butter biscuits! Not again…" He groaned.

"What's wrong?"

"An old friend asked me to watch his daughter. Keep her out of trouble." Pacifica raised an eyebrow. "Yes, it sounds very similar to your situation, but I was meant to keep her safe."

"Keep her safe?"

"Well, she's a very peculiar girl you see. She's always been into the macabre. Would sooner read Edgar Allen Poe than a fashion magazine. Loves dark colors. There was a word for it I think…"

"She's Goth."

"Yes, that's it." He became somber. "But while there's nothing wrong with such a preference, other girls her age target her for such a thing. Much like now." He pointed to a girl that matched the goth type, as well as three other girls that were confronting her. "I would interfere, but I've already warded those same girls away once before. They're just going to keep coming. I fear it's because I'm watching from afar rather than being by her side."

"Yeah." Pacifica noted how similar they sounded to the old her. "Girls like that tend to pick off the outcasts."

"Like lowly coyotes it seems." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I would stay by her, but I'm no fool. No girl wants to be pestered by an old coot like that. Still, I wish I could keep those pests away for good."

Pacifica pondered for a moment. He had been nice enough to consider talking to her father. Perhaps she could repay him this way. "I can watch her."

The man turned to her. "You would?"

"Yeah. Give her someone to hang out with for a little bit, and chase away the coyotes." She smiled. "I'm a teen, just like her. She'll listen to me."

He chuckled. "Ah, I see what you did there. Then again, this would make it easier to search for your father… yes, this could work. Though I would ask you not to tell her I had you come over, she gets very embarrassed when me or her parents meddle."

"Of course." She "zipped" her mouth shut. "Mum's the word."

"Thank you. You're a wonderful young lady Ms. Pacifica."

"It's no problem Mister…

"Vlad Masters. But you can just call me Vlad."

* * *

Over an hour earlier

It had been a long, long trip. The lectures by her father and mother certainly didn't help. They just droned on and on about how she should be more ladylike and not so gloomy and ERGGGGGH!

Needless to say, as her family's private jet was about to land, Sam Manson was in no mood to party. Especially not in a mood to party in a "sophisticated" way. Please… that just meant acting like a stuck-up prick who couldn't express themselves. With no offense to her parents… okay, maybe a little.

While her father had taken a break, her mother Pamela had kept on as usual. "Honestly, black is no good at a party like this. We're not going to a funeral young lady."

"Oh geez, never heard that one before." Sam retorted sarcastically.

"Well, Samantha, that's what happens when you look so dreary. Wearing something with warmer colors will give off a much more impressive aura. Especially at a lively party like this one."

"Is black really such a catastrophe to wear?"

Her mother scoffed. "Even if it wasn't, it still wouldn't be alright that they all look like they went through the shredder."

Sam smirked. "I don't know. I'd like to think it scares away unwanted attention."

"Ugh. Always difficult." The plane landed, and the pilot notified them that it was okay to stand.

The goth girl got up from her seat. "I could say the same." As she opened the compartment above her for one of her bags, a large human shaped object fell out of it.

"GUH!" It hit the floor with a thud, surprising all three present. As the figure got up, they all managed to recognize him.

"Danny?"

"Fenton?"

Danny rubbed his head, laughing nervously. "Oh! Well whaddya know, this isn't my room, hehe!" Sam's parents narrowed their eyes, clearly not satisfied with that answer. "Not buying it eh?"

"Danny, what are you doing here?" sam questioned him.

Sam's father Jeremy came forward. "I'd like to know the same."

"Oh, well, I know how much you hate these stuck-up parties, and I didn't want my girlfriend to suffer alone." Sam smiled at him.

"Aw, Danny…" Her smile soon turned into a frown. "You didn't plan this far ahead, did you?"

"Hiding in a small place was as far as I got, yeah."

"Don't worry, young man." Pamela began. "You won't have to plan anymore. You're going home."

Danny threw his hands up. "Wait, don't send me home! There's no one there. My family went on a spring break trip to Death Valley."

"Death Valley?! Why on earth would they go there?" Jeremy asked him.

"Ghosts." Danny simply replied.

"Ah…"

Pamela wasn't going to give up yet. "Still, we're calling your parents about this. I believe we can work something out."

* * *

"I'm sorry, but nothing will work out!" Danny's mom said, over the video phone. "It's simply too dangerous to make a trip into Death Valley with all these ghosts, and we need to stay here and rid this desert of specters. Community service, you know. Oh, and we're currently surrounded by ghost cowboys. Still, this does explain why Danny's been so motionless…"

"Mom! The ghosts hogtied Dad again!" Danny's sister Jazz said from offscreen.

"It's alright Maddie! I remember watching an old film of Houdini getting out of this easily! Ol' Jack Fenton'll be out sooner than you can say "Hi Ho"!"

Maddie shook her head. "I better go and get him free. Danny, we're having a long talk with you once the week is over. Come on Jazz, let's show 'em what us cowgirls can do!" And with that, the call shut off.

Danny sweat nervously, as the four stood in the hotel lobby. "Yeah, definitely didn't think this through." He turned his phone off and put it away.

Pamela just sighed. "Well, young man, it looks like you're stuck with us. Come on Jeremy, let's go ask the staff for a good tuxedo. If he's going to be here the whole week he'll at least look good."

"Indeed."

As Sam's parents walked away, the girl leaned over to her boyfriend with another smug grin. "Your parents provide nice cover, don't they?"

"Well, even without the trip to Death Valley, my mom is particularly great at acting." Danny smiled. "Plus, she jumps at any chance to pull the rug out from under Vlad."

"I'll bet. Still, meeting with two well-known supervillains. Not Vlad's smartest play."

"Maybe if people knew who he was, but out of the four of them, he's still got his secret identity. A "benevolent" one, at that." He air quoted benevolent. "Add that random inconspicuous fourth guy in and a lot of suspicion is taken off the group."

"Still, it's gonna be hard to find out anything with this island's security." Sam looked outside the window, spotting various armed guards. "You'd have be Batman to get anywhere around here…"

"Well, I may not be Batman, but I'm the next best thing." Sam gave him a funny look. "What? How much worse can a ghost be compared to a guy in a bat suit?"

Sam noticed ringing coming from his pocket. "Looks like Casanova's calling." She pointed to his phone.

"Huh? Oh." Pressing the button, their third friend Tucker appeared onscreen.

"I see a certain halfa made it okay."

"As far as I know, anyway." Danny jokingly looked around him to see if something was "missing".

Tucker gave them an inquiring eyebrow. "And my super special toys?"

"All hidden in my luggage." Sam answered.

"Good. And though all calls made outside the resort are usually monitored, they can't monitor transmissions made using ghost energy. Perfect for us tech geeks that don't have the billionaire budget to make tech with untraceable calls. They'll just think it's another call ghosting!" Tucker laughed at his own pun, then put his arms behind his head in relaxation. "Meaning you can update me anytime without worry. Especially when there's ladies around~."

Sam scoffed. "Yeah, cause a bunch of rich snobby girls are gonna want to talk to a tech junkie."

"Hey, I got the moves! They'll be impressed by my technical prowess!"

"Surely." Danny said sarcastically. "You're just antsy because you couldn't come, aren't you?"

Tucker suddenly broke down without warning. "I could've come along! Why didn't you take me too Danny? Aren't we friends?!"

Danny flinched at how loud he was getting. "Tuck! Easy! There's still people around us!"

Tucker snapped out of his episode. "Oh. Right. My bad."

Danny rubbed his ear. "So, are you sure your toys can help me spy on Vlad and his buddies?"

"Sure thing. You could do it with the phone in your hand alone if you wanted." He began searching on his computer. "But don't get comfortable. The tech I sent you is only good for getting past primary measures. If security thinks something is up, they'll do deeper scans, and they will find you."

Danny shrugged. "Well, for being on a budget, it's still decent."

"Only decent? You insult me Danny-boy."

"Yeah, yeah. Look, we'll get back to you when we have an update, ok?"

"Or a girl!"

"Not happening."

"Worth a shot. Foley out!" And the call ended.

Sam nudged Danny. "Right on time too. Here comes the fashion committee." She pointed to her parents reentering the room.

"Well, we found a nice tux for you Daniel! Looks like there was a silver lining."

"Oh boy." Danny sweat a bit.

Danny walked with the Mansons, tugging at his collar. "Feels like this collar is strangling me… who exactly are your parents trying to impress?"

"Ugh. Everyone." Sam said in disgust. She herself was currently sporting a long and dreary dress (1). "They think it's all about high standards, or something stupid like that."

"Well, I'll have a high standard death, that's for sure." He felt his neck again.

"Maybe, but luckily for you, I know CPR." She said jokingly.

Danny grinned. "I look forward to it."

"Pamela! Jeremy! It's so good that you made it!" The host of the resort, Whimsley, was currently greeting Sam's parents. He turned to the teens. "And that must mean you're Samantha and… and guest? Mr. Manson, I don't recall you saying you would take guests." He grew slightly stern, as if he himself was becoming a parent.

"My sincere apologies, Horace. He snuck aboard our plane so he could provide Samantha with company."

Whimsley's face softened. "Ah, young love. Kids always do crazy things for it… well, it's no real issue, honestly. Just keep track of him as if you had chosen to bring him."

"Of course, Horace. Ta-ta!" Pamela replied. And with that they all headed for the main ballroom. The young teens trailed a bit behind so they could discuss their plans without Sam's parents hearing.

Once they, entered, Danny's mouth dropped. The place was huge. "This mansion's colossal! It's gonna take forever to find Vlad in here. Especially when it gets more packed." He whispered to Sam.

"Which means we need to start looking now." Sam stated. "Come on, Danny."

"Just a minute, Samantha." Jeremy stopped them, hearing the last part. "Where do you think you're going?"

"What? If I'm going be stuck here, I might as well look around."

"Going off alone with Daniel? I think not." He rebuffed. "I'm aware of what goes through a boy's mind at that age."

"Agreed. Not only that, but we need to keep you two out of other troubles." Pamela added.

Sam lifted her finger. "Okay, first off? Ew. Danny's not like that, Dad. And secondly, as much as I would enjoy doing something that could get us kicked off the island, I don't want to go on another long and boring plane ride. You don't have anything to worry about from me."

Pamela shook her head. "Even if that were the case Samantha, we'd rather you stay here."

"Oh come on, as if you'd really want a goth girl and a middle class dork around your "friends"." She turned back to her boyfriend. "No offense, Danny."

"None taken."

Jeremy shook his head. "That's in no way true, Samantha."

"Yeah. Right."

Jeremy sighed, then thought of something. "Fine. But here's what's going to happen. You have three hours. If I haven't heard of any incident revolving around you or Daniel, then we will allow you two to go off on your own afterwards as well."

Sam thought for a moment. "…Deal."

Pamela crossed her arms. "Very well. I can agree to those terms too. But Daniel…"

"Yes, Mrs. Manson?"

She got right in his face. "Don't give me any inkling of suspicion that you've been up to some _funny business_ with my daughter." Her eyes narrowed. "Or there will be consequences."

"D-d-deal."

"Alright then." She turned back to Sam. "You may go Samanatha."

Sam pulled Danny along, the boy still trying to stop shaking. A good distance away from them, he finally spoke. "If I had any thoughts about wanting to do it, they've been thoroughly quelled."

"Same here." She blushed just thinking about it. She couldn't even think about such a thing without getting flustered.

"Any sign of him?" Danny asked, surveying the current room they were in.

"She groaned in response. "No, and this is the third large room we've been in."

Danny smashed his fist into his other hand. "And there's the possibility he's in a room we already checked in! We'll never find him like this."

"We have to cover more ground." Sam noted.

"You mean split up? I dunno Sam, feels like that might do more harm than good."

"We're not confronting Vlad directly, Danny. Just keeping an eye on him, remember?" She took his hand. "You and I both have Tucker's ear pieces. We'll contact each other if we find him."

"…Alright, but you stay safe, okay?" He gave her a peck on the cheek. "And once we get enough we're satisfied with we can have a few dances before the night's over." With that, he ran off down a hallway, a smile on his face. Sam was left blushing up a storm.

Snapping out of her trance, Sam went down the hallway opposite of Danny's. "Even splitting up, we might not end up finding him…" She said to herself. She entered a large and lengthy room, filled with paintings and sculptures. "Hmm. More high-class things… I wonder how much of this stuff these people actually like. Some of them might just like it for the image it gives them…wait a minute."

What they like… high-class things… the image it gives them…

"Of course!" Sam exclaimed. "There's got to be something here that would attract Vlad to it! But what?" After pondering, she thought of something that could work. She noticed one of the butlers near her.

"Excuse me, sir." The butler turned to her. "Does Mr. Whimsley have any rooms dedicated to sports?"

"Why yes he does Madam." He replied cheerfully. "Master Whimsley prides himself on his collection of various sports memorabilia. I may take you there if you'd like."

"That'd be great." She crossed her fingers, hoping this idea bore success.

As he guided her down the halls, he conversed with her more. "I have to say, I didn't expect one such as yourself to find interest in sports. But I can say you'll be greatly impressed with the Master's collection."

Sam decided to take this moment to get details. "Is there anything surrounding the Packers?"

"Indeed, there is. It's one of the Master's best items. The one and only game winning ball from the famous "Ice Bowl"!"

Sam wasn't sure what that was, considering she definitely wasn't interested in football. But if it was something famous that had to do with the Packers, Vlad would be attracted to it like a moth to a light.

They stopped at a door, and the butler opened it for Sam. "Here you are, Madam."

"Thanks, dude. I'll take it from here." The butler nodded as she walked in.

A large crowd had already bunched up inside the room. Though they were all dressed formally, Sam could hear casual sports talk coming from all directions. There were various doorways leading subsections of the room, each dedicated to a different sport. Sam started slowly walking through the room. If Vlad actually was here, then she would want to see him before he saw her.

A particularly loud amount of giggling caught her attention. Her eyes fell upon a group of girls around her age… and all of them had the same look as a certain alpha bitch from back home.

"Oh. Right. This is where girls like Paulina thrive." Just thinking about her made her blood boil. And that only made her want to tell off the random girls too. "Just… calm down, Sam. That's not what you're here for."

Brushing off her anger, she entered the section labeled "football". The entire room was filled to the brim with jerseys, helmets, and even a few patches of certain football fields. Sam could only wonder what the other rooms looked like…

"I could stare at it for the whole evening."

She jumped when she heard a familiar suave, yet menacing voice. Following the source, she found the Packers display, along with the Ice Bowl ball. And who could be standing there but the exact man she had been looking for. Vlad Masters, Danny's archenemy, and a guaranteed fruit loop. She smiled, counting herself lucky he hadn't seen her.

"A historical moment for the Packers, and for football in general. The intense Ice Bowl, where the Packers faced the Dallas Cowboys in the dreaded cold. Temperatures dropping below zero degrees, yet neither team would relent, even as some of them gained frostbite." Great. He was talking to himself. And hamming it up, at that. "And yet, the Packers prevailed, delivering the final goal with this ball…out of all of my own Packers memorabilia, this is the only item I've failed to get my hands on. Well, that and the team itself. And yet, Mr. Whimsley was able to obtain it with so little trouble! It baffles me to no end. I can't figure out how he did it." Sam rolled her eyes, pulling out her earpiece. "Though I bet you would know even less about that than I do, Samantha."

Samantha tensed up in fear.

"Yes, yes, shock and horror, "he knows". But you must remember that there is such a thing as reflective glass, young lady." He tapped on the ball's display case, then walked over to the goth. "Though honestly my girl, who wouldn't see you coming in that flashy thing? You might as well be Christopher Walken in a vampire suit."

Sam quickly regained her composure. "And you might as well be wearing a cheese head with how much you're fantasizing about that ball."

"Abrasive as usual, I see." Vlad simply kept staring down at her with that smug grin. "I take it young Daniel's also present at this party? It would explain the earpiece."

"Well, it wouldn't be a party if he wasn't kicking your butt, now would it?"

Vlad chuckled. "Oh, Samantha, you and I both know he can't lay a finger on me at this particular party. Though I suppose the vice versa is also true. But that hardly helps your case. I can converse with "business partners" as much as I would like, but your snooping around is something frowned upon on this resort."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "Something also frowned upon is having your business partners be well-known criminal bluebloods."

"Ah, but being a well-known charitable billionaire can certainly turn those frowns upside down, can't they?" Vlad pulled out his phone. "This conversation has been lovely, Samantha, but my associates will be here soon, and I'd like to check some of the performances before our meeting."

"All the more reason for me to keep track of you."

"Hmm. Usually I would manipulate it to where you wouldn't be able to follow me… but this time I think I'll let natural societal archetypes do it all on their own."

"Natural societal archetypes?" What was he going on about now? Vlad merely walked out of the room, still smug.

"Well, well, well." A arrogant voice rang out from beside her. "I wasn't expecting a funeral to take place here."

"Well, someone's dressed for one, at least." The same giggling she heard from before rang out.

_"Really? Funeral again? Is that always the first thing that comes to everyone's mind when they see me? The least people could do is at least be creative..."_ She found the source to be the very same group of girls from earlier, giggling even more than before. _"Looks like these scavengers are here for their next meal."_ She crossed her arms.

"Oh, did we offend Ms. Gruesome? I'm sorry, but you look so out of place among the living." The middle girl said with a southern accent, and the other girls laughed with her. It seemed she was the leader.

"Well, I know I'm living better than you, southern belle." The girl frowned, and Sam could tell the girl felt ready to stomp her out. "Gotta say though, out of all the insults I've heard, that one's pretty bland. You know how many times I've heard of jeers having to do with corpses?"

"Well, it does take care of the weaker ones. But you're right. Freakier ones like you need to be hit with truths that have a bit more... mmm, strength." Her yes-girls nodded. "But I believe introductions are in order! I'm Clarabelle, and the only thing you need to know about me, is that when I'm around, I'm the queen. And that's regardless of whether your richer or poorer than me."

_"Okay, I take it back, this girl might be even worse than Paulina."_ She was already losing her patience even faster than she usually lost it with her archenemy, a new record. "Well, Queenie, if you expect me to bow down, don't hold your breath."

"You're right, that's too good for you. I think groveling and begging for mercy sounds better." She turned to the other girls. "I mean, falling on the ground must come naturally to a depressing goth like you. Considering how apathetic you all always look, I'm surprised you have the energy or motivation to get out of bed in the morning."

"Common misconception." Sam retorted. "We care about things, it's just we couldn't care less about you perfectionists."

"Perfectionists? Or just perfect?" She grinned even harder. "Though that does explain it. You act so gloomy towards us popular kids because you're jealous. You know you can't ever be so good-looking, or sociable, or successful as us. No, the only thing goths are good at is apparently waiting for the end."

"That's emos, not goths. If you're going to insult me, do it right." Clarabelle didn't seem to care all that much. "And secondly, I can hardly link any of those attributes to you. You look almost encased with all that foundation on your face, no one really counts being rude and snobbish as good social traits, and all of your real success is piggy-backed off your parents. Now, as much as I'd like to keep tearing into you verbally, I have much better things to do tonight. Go find a mirror to get lost in." She strut away from the conversation. Oddly enough, Clarabelle didn't try to stop her. Maybe she was too busy fuming to try. Whatever, it was over with.

Getting back on track, she cursed when she realized she had lost Vlad. "Bastard must've seen them coming. He knew they'd confront and stall me." And by now he was already in an unknown part of the mansion. "Alright, Sam. Think... where would he go next? Maybe something he said before he left..." She blazed through the conversation in her mind. It wasn't very helpful, that is until the last bit. 

_"...but my associates will be here soon, and I'd like to check some of the performances before our meeting."_

"Performances! He's going to be at the theater!" She quickly made a beeline for the outside area, currently holding the many acts and bands. He wouldn't be getting away that easily.

As she entered the fairly large courtyard, she at first didn't see any sign of the megalomaniac. Had she been wrong?

Her doubts were quelled though, as she spotted a familiar bleach white ponytail in the audience, currently enjoying a calming jazz song that was just finishing up. She stayed in the back, not wanting to be seen. "Ok, that's good. He's here after all. Now I can call Danny and..."

"Excuse me, gothy?" A familiar southern accent called to her.

She slowly turned around, hoping it wasn't the same brunette from before... only to groan when the very same girl happened to be standing there. "What do you want?"

"Oh, just to applaud you. I had to admit it, you have a very quick mouth. And honestly I couldn't just let it go without a reward." She snickered.

Sam just stared at her incredulously. "A reward? Really? Right."

"Oh, but I'm serious! You see, it's something rather impressive when a girl fights against such a bleak power system we have. I'll be honest, it can really beat down on your spirit. I guess that's why I was so mean. It's always funny when it happens to someone else, and all that."

Sam wasn't buying it. "And you were surprised that I still had my spirit, is that it?"

"I really was." She said in a way that almost sounded convincing. "Truth is, when that struggle for power comes along, you can't help but play by it's rules. It's either step on everyone else, or be stampeded. And it don't feel good to be crushed by someone else's foot. Crushing others, well... the amusement yo get takes your mind off of what you've become."

Sam raised an eyebrow. She still wasn't buying it, but she had to wonder what this girl's motives were.

"So, let's have a proper introduction this time. I'm Clarabelle, and you are...?" She gestured to Sam.

"Sam." She put bluntly. "Sam Manson."

"Well, Sam, let me make it up to you for how I acted earlier. It'll be on me."

Sam didn't have time to question what exactly she was going to purchase at a place with free food, before a sudden feeling of cold and wet washed over her. As she pulled her now sticky hair out of her eyes, one of the burning from the punch. She could see from the traces of purple and black in the puddle beneath her that her makeup was running.

"Or rather, it's on you." She cackled. Her friends from before followed suit, and only now did Sam realize that they hadn't been by her side. "And your lovely reward is that we've made you smell better than you did before. You're welcome."

Sam growled at her. She tried to flick some of the punch onto the girl, but she managed to dodge it.

"Ohoho! Someone's grumpy." Her smile suddenly turned into a sinister sneer. "Now see, I told you before, I'm the queen. No one gets off saying what you said to me. Now, you can act as tough and rebellious as you want, but under all that hideous black and the spikes... you're just a loser that's trying to hide the fact that the world thinks she's pathetic. Meanwhile, under my makeup is just a different kind of beauty, that everyone finds to be a perfect fit for this world! So, call me arrogant, shallow, or maybe even sadistic-it won't matter! I've proven I'm one of the ones who will go far in this world. But the only thing you've proven is that you're another lowly commoner, ready to be crushed underneath the heels of people like me."

Sam wouldn't dare say it, but she could honestly cry right now. This girl was ten times worse than Paulina. Paulina would simply say how much more popular she was in an attempt to belittle you, but this girl? She was going out of her way to break people's spirits entirely. She was just about ready to attack this girl...

"Now, about that groveling..."

"Ahem."

All four girls turned to find a newcomer to the conflict. Sam could only wonder who had come. Hopefully someone that would kick Cowgirl out... But Sam's hopes dwindled when she saw yet another girl that fit Clarabelle's type of friend. _"Do they just mate like rabbits here?!"_

However, Clarabelle was not so delighted as one would think. As the blonde-haired girl stood there with her hands on her hips, she only felt the challenge of an outsider. It wasn't long before Sam could feel the intensity of the atmosphere increase.

_"Did... did I just feel a chill?"_ She wondered, looking between the blonde and the brunette.

Clarabelle was ready to assert her dominance, making first introduction. "Do you need something?" The other girl didn't answer, simply continuing to stare her down. Clarabelle tried to hide the fact that this bothered her. "Well, I suggest you either join in on the fun, or leave. Though if you decide to stay, you might want to change. That hideous purple dress is too tacky for me to keep you around.

The blonde simply looked over Clarabelle's dress, before giving a scoff. Her face became less intense, and seemed only annoyed now.

For whatever reason Sam could not comprehend, Clarabelle began to get angry. "Well, well. Looks like we have another girl who thinks she's a big shot. Be careful, or someone may have to put you in your place." However, Clarabelle's posse were looking at each other in surprise. It was almost as if everyone here was speaking some unspoken language that Sam couldn't understand.

_"Am I missing something here?"_

The girl on the other hand have gone from annoyed to indifferent. Her attention went to Sam, looking her over now. "Ugh." Was the only thing she said.

This really set Clarabelle off. "Alright you blonde bimbo, perhaps you don't know who I am. I'm Clarabelle? Clarabelle Hawkthrone? When I'm present, everyone else is my place-mat. That includes you."

The girl finally spoke up. "How primitive. So you're the one who calls the shots. I was right... this party does have low standards."

"Low standards?!" Clarabelle fumed. "Just who do you think you are? No, don't tell me, because I already know. A dumb bitch who's going to be put in her place."

"Ugh. Yes. I could hear your screeching from the other side of the room." The girl stated. "How much effort you had to put into actually getting a few steps in life."

Clarabelle's yes-girls gasped. As she looked at the southern girl, even Sam could tell Clarabelle's confidence was breaking. "E-effort?"

"Honestly, the fact you have to try so hard... you probably think you're actually someone important, don't you? See, that's how the fake popular girls get things done." She suddenly snapped her fingers, and gestured the other two to get out. The girls left, as if the girl had been a bear. "The true ones' demand respect with their presence alone. People know they deserve to be considered gods and goddesses by the time they walk into the room. People know they shouldn't be messed with. And we can all see..." She looked at Sam again. "...that isn't the case with you."

Clarabelle could barely get her words out now. "B-but I... I'm the... Clarabelle...I-I-I'm queen!"

"You're still here?" Pacifica said, still looking disinterested. "Go play pretend somewhere else, princess."

Her confidence completely crushed, Clarabelle ran off. Sam could swear she saw her crying. As much as she wanted to laugh at this, it only made her sweat as the other girl remained. If she could make Clarabelle, whom Sam deemed even worse than Paulina, run away and cry, then what the hell was she like?

The blonde turned back to Sam... and gave her smile. "We can still save that dress." Sam didn't say anything. "Oh! Right. My name's Pacifica. Anyway, I think the servants can get all of this cleaned up in a manner of minutes. We can also tell them about those party crashers. Those sneaks caught you in a place where none of the security could really see you."

"Wait, wait, WAIT!" Sam raised up her hands. "Hold on a minute. You waltz right in, scare off little miss royalty, and then decide you want to help me? I don't think so. I've had enough tricks for one night."

Pacifica became sad. It was actually convincing, unlike Clarabelle's faces. "I... know you don't trust me. But you can trust the servants. They're good people, and they uphold the rules. They can take you to the showers and clean your dress up. I promise." Sam raised her finger up to argue with that, but lowered it when she realized... she was right. While she sure as hell couldn't trust this blonde girl, the staff could still help her regardless.

"Alright. Fine. Whatever."

Sam just glared at Pacifica, who was sitting there in the corner, waiting for Sam to get done drying. In her lap was Sam's dress all nice and clean, while some makeup supplies sat on the coffee table next to her. Surely enough, a servant had com back in a little less than fifteen minutes, with Sam's dress completely clean. Sam was more focused on Pacifica however, and how insistent she was on helping Sam clean up. Just what did this girl want, exactly? There was no way such a preppy girl would think of helping a goth like her without getting something out of it.

"So... how are you feeling?" Pacifica asked, trying to break the ice.

"What do you care?" Sam snapped back at her.

Pacifica shied away at that. "I just wanted to know if you were doing better."

Sam supposed she was, and grabbed her dress. "Yeah. But I'm not exactly ready to make friends here." She went behind a dressing screen.

"No, no, I understand." Her face fell somber a bit. "I don't think anyone would be in the mood to be helped by a quote-unquote "popular" girl."

"Look, would you just stop? I don't know what it is exactly you want, but you can stop with the act." She peered out from behind the screen. "I promised my parents I wouldn't get into it, and while I may be a rebel, I want to hold up on my end of the bargain this time."

"I'm not planning anything, I swear!" She said defensively. However, her head hung only moments later. "But... I can understand your suspicion. I was pretty much the exact person you would think I was a few years back."

"Oh, really? And what happened a few moments ago wasn't the same case?" she went back behind the screen.

Pacifica looked away, thinking back to the encounter. "Girls like that don't tend to be warded off by merely sticking up for yourself. If you want to chase them away, you have to be even more ruthless and vicious than they are. But yeah, I suppose it's still a good example of how I was when I was younger."

"What made you want to change into Ms. Nice-girl, exactly?" She peered around the screen once more.

"Some people I met. I was pretty cruel to them too. But they... they cracked open my shell. I've been trying to be better ever since." She remembered fondly.

Sam had gone from incredulous to... surprised. She could actually feel the sincerity in Pacifica's voice. More sincerity than she heard in a while. Though she was still suspicious she decided to relent a bit. "Well, I still don't trust you... but thanks."

Pacifica seemed relieved to hear that from her, and smiled. "No problem." She looked at the makeup beside her. "I didn't know what colors you had exactly, but these should still go with your dress nicely."

"Uh..." Sam was surprised again. She wanted to give her things of her preference? "Thanks...again."

After finally getting dressed, Sam left the room, Pacifica trailing a bit behind.

"You know, I can probably take care of myself for any future encounters." Sam noted.

"Maybe, but those popular girls might only see that as a challenge." She came up beside Sam. "But I know each type like the back of my-" She cut herself off as she yanked Sam into a dark hallway.

"What the-?" Pacifica shushed Sam, and looked from the dark area, not wanting to completely reveal herself. Sam however, had taken this another way. "Uh... hey, I don't really swing this way."

Pacifica coughed, even though she hadn't been drinking anything. "Wh-what? No, no, I just didn't want someone to see me."

This only confused Sam. She heard footsteps coming down the hallway, and looked at where they once were. The person who came by was... herself. Sam's jaw dropped. After that, a teenage boy trying to get "Pacifica's" attention ran by. Finally, a young boy with a weird looking hairstyle walked by. Pacifica decided this was the time to pop out.

"Billy!" She quietly called, but it was enough to get the kid's attention. She gave him a thumbs up, and he waved excitedly right back at her, before continuing after the other two.

Sam emerged from the hallway as well. "So we were hiding from... yourself."

"Yes. Wait, no. We're hiding from the teenage boy. That Pacifica's a decoy." Sam couldn't shut her jaw. It sounded so ridiculous. "It's a... long story. Let's just continue back to the party, okay?"

"R...right." Sam reluctantly agreed. Maybe it would be better if she just pretended that didn't happen. A few minutes later, after getting over the shock, Sam was wondering something different. "Hey, Pacifica."

"Hmm?"

"I got to ask. If you want to change so badly, then why still interested in all the high-maintenance stuff? That choker doesn't look cheap." She pointed to Pacifica's amethyst neck piece.

Pacifica gripped the gem. "Well... liking nice restaurants and fashion is something I still really enjoy. Even while trying to change, it still keeps my interest. But I don't think i'm any better than others because of it. It's nothing impressive, right? Just an interest."

Sam never really thought of it that way. Most of the time when people were into these kind of things, they were also elitists who thought little of anyone else, or their hobbies. She never associated "fashion" or symphonies with any decent people. But whether she was good or not, Pacifica yet again had a point. What about those people who just... liked it? It wasn't really the type of music or art that it was, it was who came along with it. They gave nice clothes and orchestras a bad name.

"Looks like we made it back to the ballroom. Are you sure you don't want any help for the snobs around here?"

Sam didn't smile, but she wasn't angry anymore. Maybe she should meet this girl again, and see if she was truly out to help. "I'm... fine. Honestly. Plus, considering you scared away the "queen", I'd think her pawns won't be trying anything anytime soon. And... the name's Sam."

"Okay, stay safe out there Sam."

She smirked in response. "Don't worry, those elitists won't get the drop on me anym-" She paused and mentally went back over the word "elitists" again. _"Crap! Vlad!"_ She had completely forgotten about him in the scuffle! "Okay, Pacifica, I really got to get going! Maybe we'll see each other again tonight."

"Yeah. Maybe."

* * *

Pacifica's smile hadn't gone away yet. Besides the suspicion, something about helping this girl felt good. She wasn't sure if this was what Mabel was talking about... but she had some kind of feeling in her gut, that's for sure.

"PACIFICA ELISE NORTHWEST!"

That gut feeling soon turned into nausea, when she heard a familiar yell.

* * *

In another room, Vlad was chuckling to himself. "Ah, yes. I do so love it when things fall together. It almost makes me forget that Preston is being an imbecile." He clenched his fist.

His phone vibrated again. Taking it out, his facial expression grew calm.

"Honestly, must that idiot girl and that monkey brain take so long? I must be the only precise one out of any of us. Oh well. This gives me time to knock some sense into Preston."

* * *

A good ways away, near the center of the island, the security team worked hard watching for incoming threats. Inside the monitoring room, many officers looked over live footage of the surrounding ocean. It'd mostly been quiet, minus the arrival of the guests. However, one officer noticed something strange on his monitor.

"Sir, are you seeing this?" The cadet asked his superior.

"What is it rookie?"

"I mean, I didn't think it was an aircraft at first, but once I got a closer look, it turned out to be a jet. And it's coming in pretty fast. Should I contact them with a warning?"

"Easy, cadet. They could be a guest. Just describe what it looks like so I can confirm with the boss."

"…uhh… I don't know if you'll believe me sir."

"Just spit it out."

"It… it looks like a giant white dragon."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I probably don't have to mention that Danny Phantom characters sound like their original voice actors. Sam's dress is a very gothic metal look, akin to her prom getup in the show (for you Phantom fans out there). I do need to clarify that while a lot of season 3 happened... Phantom Planet did not. Also to clarify, Danny did not wipe his parents memories in the season 2 finale. As I've come to learn- keeping your identity from your enemies is smart... but keeping your identity from your loved ones is stupid.


	5. The Gamer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some seek power. Others seek validation. A decent few seek compassion. Pacifica knows this of most of the rich people she's seen or met. But the one person that will define her path from here on out is a man who knows that none of these motivations mean anything... unless one has the drive to take it. There is only one game worth playing on this planet... the game of existence. You only have one chip to bet with. The chip of life. If you aren't willing to lay that chip down, to bet everything on your choices and paths, then you will achieve nothing. You have already lost. 
> 
> Then again, the man who shows her that thoroughly enjoys a children's card game so, you know... make of that what you will.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guest 4... this character introduction was my most favorite to write.

"Unacceptable, Unacceptable!" Preston was currently stomping his foot in fury as he scolded Pacifica. They were in a room that was empty at the moment. "I told you to stay in one spot. One spot! I told you not to say anything, not to touch anything, or even look at anyone funny! And what happens? I barely look away for fifteen minutes and you're gone!"

"You were gone for a whopping forty-five minutes." She corrected him. "And I got bored."

"Bored? Bored! Do you realize the havoc you could have caused if anyone important saw you? Talked with you?!" He wiped the sweat from his forehead. "It turns me white just thinking about it."

Pacifica groaned. "Where is mom, anyway?"

"Currently "holding the fort" as one would say. She knows what to say, and how to retreat until I get back." He turned to her. "But that's irrelevant. Don't change the subject, young lady. Now, seeing as I can't trust you to do the simplest of tasks, it seems I will have to keep you at my side at all times. You will not step out of line in any way, or-"

"Or what, exactly?" Pacifica snapped. "Use the bell? Hate to tell you dad, but I know you won't dare use that in front of people. You know it's screwed up, so you wouldn't dare let anyone see you use it."

"But I can still use it when we are away from the public. Like here." He reached into his tux.

"Go ahead. Use it." She challenged. "I may relent to that thing more often than not, but tonight I've got plenty of reasons to steel through it!"

Preston cocked an eyebrow. "What in blazes are you talking about?"

"Oh? You didn't know? I've met plenty of people tonight!" She shouted the last part.

Preston nearly fell over at this. "Y-y-you… you what?!"

"Yeah! And who was it I talked to first? Oh, that's right! Mr. Wayne came over to talk to me personally." She stated, and Preston started sweating nervously. "As it turns out, he actually is proud of those foundations we talked about, and you were completely off. And you know what? He'd like to talk to me again."

"GAH!" Preston shrieked. "You… you… don't you understand anything about social queues?!"

"No! Because the social queues you think are social queues are NONEXISTENT!" Pacifica "pondered" again. "And who was the second guy? Oh yeah! He went by the name Billy Billions!"

"Billions?! The tech mogul?! Oh no, you idiotic girl! How could you embarrass us in front of someone so important?!" He was clutching his face in fear. "Oh, this is dreadful! Dreadful, dreadful, dreadful, dreadful…"

"And then I made friends with another girl. Well… sorta. Still, she was pretty cool. Her name was Sam. And guess what, dad? She was a goth girl." She snickered as Preston whirled around, a look of horror on his face.

"A goth?! How could you converse with someone so lowly?" He pulled his hair. Something about that nearly sent Pacifica into hysterics. "Please tell me you weren't friendly to someone like her!"

"Extremely friendly." She smiled evilly.

"GAHHHH!" He shouted into the air. "You've been astounding for years! Something I could be proud of! My daughter was the perfect example of high-class children, the best of the best! A winner! No one else's children could compare. But now, once they find out you became friends with this girl, I'll become a laughing stock!"

"Well, I guess that's your problem. I'm not some simple trophy that you can just show off to your followers," She sneered. "and your "image" is not my responsibility."

"Wrong. This huge mess would have never happened had you just stayed still and quiet!" He raised his head. "No… no, this would have never happened had we not let that boy into our mansion! Ever since then he and his family have been putting ideas into your head!"

Pacifica's smiled deteriorated into a scowl. "He proposed to me that you were nothing but a hack. That's a pretty good idea if I ever heard one."

"Gah! This is precisely what I mean! He and his family have turned you into a ruffian with no sense of standards! It's nothing but you cursing and insulting me now!" He threw his hands up. "I can't even let you out of the house without worrying that our cherished name will be tarnished. Do you know how risky that is for us? For you?"

"Don't you dare pretend that you're even the slightest bit worried about me. The only thing you care about is yourself, Dad. You "care" about what happens to me because you think I'm nothing but a pet that you train and groom to your liking. No exaggeration. That damn bell is proof enough of that." She pointed to his chest. "I mean, Pavlovian dog training on your daughter? Your flesh and blood? Seriously?"

"Assurance, dear. And it was completely necessary. It insured that you would never stray from the path. Though I can see now it wasn't enough." He clenched his fist. "All that work undone by a hick and his family!"

"Yeah, and you wanna know why? Because people aren't dogs, Dad." She spat out. "Especially not me! If you think you'll be able to sit there and bark orders at me, expecting me to obey like the little "accomplishment" I am, then you're even more delusional than I thought."

"Arrrrgh!" Preston shouted in frustration. "That does it. I won't have any more of this. No more rebellion, no more irritation, no more Pines! I'm going to ensure they won't be a problem anymore!"

"Well, good luck trying to get me to comply. Or have you already forgotten that I'm in no mood to go back to the way things were?"

Preston began to fix his now slightly messy hair. "No, no. Clearly there's no use in trying to stop the issue working on the outside in. No, to eradicate this infection, it must be cut off at the source."

Pacifica already knew what this meant. But she wasn't worried. "Really, Dad? Bigger and badder beings than you have tried to destroy Dipper's family and failed miserably. Or do I have to remind you of the geometric shape that rearranged your face? Literally?"

"Not necessary!" Preston suddenly shouted, panic in his voice. "...Y-yes, daughter, I'm completely aware of... their past opponents."

"So what makes you think you'll do any better?"

"My dear, while the Pines are indeed very versatile, it doesn't change the fact that an eight year old child managed to steal their little outhouse's will. Not to mention he was able to keep it because our town's legislation and judiciary are a complete joke." A sinister smile appeared on his face. "If a poor scamming child was able to do all that, what do you think a rich man like me is capable of inflicting on them?"

Admittedly, that was worrying. If there was one thing she knew at this point, is that the real world and the weird world were too vastly different places. Being chased down by a poltergeist was very different than keeping financial stability. After all, Dipper and Mabel nearly had to go home after Gideon stole the will to the shack, since Stan couldn't support them.

But... that didn't mean they couldn't adapt. If the little town they lived in had taught the twins anything, it was how to be on your toes. Mentally, and physically. She quickly doused her doubts.

"You can make all the threats you like, dad. But no matter what you try to do, I have faith they'll pull through it."

"Hmph. We'll see about that. But in the meantime, we salvage whatever parts of our reputation you've tainted."

Pacifica threw her hands up. "And back to square one! Honestly, if you cared anymore about your image I feel like you'd be a supervillain. Like Lex Luthor."

"You speak ill of that man, but he knows what is truly important. A true connoisseur of the finer things. It's that type of person you should aspire to be." He began checking his appearance in a nearby mirror.

"He tried to kill Superman just last week." She deadpanned.

"Well, considering how much of his things that flying clown destroys, I wouldn't blame him."

"Aaaaand you're defending a criminal. I think we're done here." Her father, not paying attention, didn't have time to react before he heard the door slam.

She made her way to the ballroom fairly quickly, ignoring the shouts of anger down the hall. She just wanted to get as far away from her father as possible. Though it wasn't a surprise he was only now going after her. He probably decided to get done making sure he looked nice before getting out of the room. Typically, before anything, he came first.

And to think, this idiot was her father. She made the comparison to Luthor, but that might have been an insult to the megalomaniac. In fact, from the tidbits she had seen of him, Luthor probably would've hated her father. He was little more than a clown with a lot of money behind his name. She had to wonder why she didn't leave or tell someone or just... do something.

But then again, even idiots could make a smart decision every now and then. That damn bell... she'd known it ever since she was a little girl. The day he started using it was the day a cold and hard chain was put around her, restricting her from going too far. She read once about how they used to train elephants, by tying up their leg with something they couldn't break or hurting them when they couldn't fight back. Then when they were adults, they wouldn't try escaping or hurting their captors since, despite growing into a dangerous behemoth, nothing was different to them.

Her situation was similar, but she was greatly aware that there was a difference nowadays. And yet, she couldn't bring herself to completely break ties. Perhaps maybe Mr. Wayne's therapist friend could help.

"Pacifica! There you are!"

That... wasn't her father. In fact, that annoying voice that sounded faux suave could only come from...

"You wouldn't believe the amount of nonsense I encountered once I left to get you punch!"

Charles Wright.

"Uh..." She wasn't sure what to say. Keep up her act from earlier? Or shrug him off again?

Charles took her inability to speak as an opportunity to explain himself. "I'm terribly sorry, my dear. But some of the oddest things kept me from finding you again. Infuriating too."

Oh... really?" She said, still a bit unsure.

"Yes! Yes, indeed! Now, though you may find it hard to believe, a young boy tricked me into following a false you."

"Uh huh."

"It's true, darling! Though I couldn't believe my eyes either." He crossed his arms. "It makes me so frustrated, thinking back on it. To be fooled by such a pale imitation. It was a mere mockery of your… figure." He stated with a sultry voice.

At this point, Pacifica finally had a course of action for her mind. First, resist the urge to dry-heave. Second, feel absolutely pissed since Billy's robot girl perfectly imitated her. In an attempt to insult the "imposter", he was also insulting her too. He really wasn't as suave as he thought he was.

"And it was being controlled by a young boy, of all people. But just as I was about to assume the worst of you, a bit of luck came my way!"

_Wright wheezed a little bit, trying his best to catch up to Pacifica. But no matter how fast he ran, she always seemed to run faster. No matter how close he got, she would disappear around the next corner. He would be infuriated if he wasn't so tired. "Darling… *wheeze* Pacifica? *huff* I can't help but feel… like you're avoiding me *cough*."_

_When he went into another room, only to see her up a large flight of stairs, he decided it was time to give up. He was starting to get sweaty, and he couldn't reach her anyways._

_He stopped, trying to catch his breath. "Fine. You *huff*… go on then. But I'm going… to tell you off a storm *puff*, when I find you again. This was simply maddening!"_

_In fact, he swore he could hear evil chuckling in the distance. Maybe he was being tormented by an imp from hell._

_"Whu-hey!" A voice rang out in the distance. "Let go of me!"_

_"Not a chance, Billy." Another voice, one that sounded older, replied. "You're gonna tell us what you were up to. You can't pull a stunt like you did and not expect us to be suspicious."_

_Curiosity motivating him, he investigated the commotion. What he found, was a small child being hoisted up by an older teen, whom was dressed very inappropriately for such an occasion. Next to him was a young Japanese girl and a… cat man?_

_"I don't have to tell you anything, Tennyson!" The small boy scrambled while whiffing the air with punches._

_"You will if you don't want to be kicked out." The girl in the pink dress countered._

_"That's what you think. MAZUMA!" The boy shouted out, and a figure whizzed by Wright._

_To his surprise, Pacifica of all people had come to the boy's aid… or so Charles had thought. Right before his eyes, Pacifica began to morph… into a completely different girl! Her hair shapeshifted into a ponytail, her dress became longer and a different color, and she grew taller. When she was done, she snatched the young boy from the other's hand. Wright was baffled. And yet… outraged. All this time, the lovely Pacifica he had been following was nothing more than a fraud. He would teach this brat to fool him…_

_"You!" He shouted, getting the group's attention. "So you're the reason why I've been exhausting myself, running all over this mansion! How dare you make a fool out of me!"_

_"I'm sorry, Mr. Billions. It seems our ruse on Mr. Wright has ended. Perhaps I should not have dropped my disguise." The… girl(?) said._

_"No, no, that's alright Mazuma. I was done with messing with him anyway." The girl set him down on his feet. "If you really must know, Ben… I was playing just a small little prank on Charles Wright here."_

_"A small prank? Yeah, right. There's got to be something more going on here." "Ben" said._

_"Enough!" Wright interrupted. "Now you try to ignore me, too? I'll have you thrown out for this!"_

_"Not a chance. I've weighed my options. At best, having a little "fun" here will only get me in a bit of trouble with security." He threw a sly smile at Ben. "Mischievous it may be, but villainous? Not so much."_

_The cat man didn't look satisfied. "Hello. Rook Blonko. What exactly did he do, Mister…?"_

_"Wright. Charles Wright. And this… thing has been leading me on, pretending to be a young woman I know." He huffed. "And at this point she must think I've stood her up."_

_"I see. And why exactly would you want to trick Mr. Wright of all people, Billy?" The cat man asked billions._

_"Well… his father thought he could insult me to my face." He scowled. "Once I tell him how much of an idiot his son is, he'll be embarrassed beyond belief."_

_"Really, Billy? That's what this is all about? How petty can you get?" Ben shook his head._

_"You little cretin! How dare you try to tarnish my name in front of my father!" Wright shouted._

_Billy chuckled. "Try? Please, I don't have to try. You make it too easy."_

_As Wright fumed, Ben decided to interject. "That's enough! Mr. Wright, we'll take care of him, okay? You just go on and have a good night."_

_Charles simply waved him off. "Don't order me around. But fine, yes, deal with him. Throw him into the brig, or whatever it is you do. I might even throw a little money your way if he somehow… got a few bruises."_

_"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Ben replied. "I'm not some paid thug you can get to rough people up."_

_"Dressed like that, you clearly can't be anything else." He gestured to Ben's incredibly casual clothing choice._

_"Look, I don't like tuxes, alright? I have a… bad history with them." Ben said. He shuddered, as if remembering something from his past. "But either way, I'm a guest here like everyone else."_

_"Could have fooled me. Here I thought you were some kind of circus act. That one over there is certainly entertaining to look at." He pointed at the tall feral individual._

_That seemed to touch the teen's nerve. "Now just hold on one damn moment you-"_

_"Ben." The girl in the pink dress stopped him. "Just ignore him." Wright took note of that little slight._

_"Indeed. I am unaffected by the comment." The cat man said, calming him down._

_Ben took a deep breath, deciding to let the comment pass. "Right… Alright, Rook, Julie, let's go alert security about Billy's actions so-"_

_"Oh, and if you could," Charles said smugly, thinking he had won. "Tell your harlot that before she can talk about "ignoring" people, she should choose a far less ugly dress next time."_

_Dead silence between the group. Julie raised her hands in defeat, not taking too kindly to that statement. Rook pinched the bridge of his nose. Ben fiddled with his watch with tranquil fury._

_Billy broke the silence, trying his best not to laugh. "Wow. You really are an idiot."_

_Before he could counter, a green light flashed, blinding him for a second. When he was able to open his eyes, he found himself face to face with a… giant… tiger man._

_The tiger man leaned down, right into Wright's face. "Let me tell you something, Mr. Charles Wright. You got three strikes!" He suddenly began yelling. "First, was that "accident" you mentioned, second was insulting my partner, and third was calling my girlfriend a harlot! You think Rath doesn't know what that means?! RATH KNOWS PLENTY WHAT HARLOT, A PROSTITUTE OR PROMISCUOUS WOMAN, MEANS! Now, Rath knows it would be bad to grind you into paste at this party, so he's feeling nice! So, I'm gonna give you to the count of three, and if you aren't gone by the time I'm done, THEN RATH IS GONNA FIND OUT HOW FAR HE CAN THROW YOU ACROSS THE ISLAND!" He growled before continuing. "Got it?"_

_"Y-y-yessir!" Charles replied, trying his hardest not to soil himself._

_Rath smiled evilly, making Charles cower even more. "…THREE!"_

_Charles screamed in terror, bolting across the room to safety. He could hear the tiger man laughing in the distance._

"It was a truly frightening experience."

Pacifica was busy trying to comprehend this story. Cat man? Tiger man? What was with the cats? And what about Billy? She knew their little stunt might be troublesome, but by the sound of it, these people treated him like some kind of villain.

"I know it's a lot to take in, but it really happened. But it's over now. Perhaps we can finally continue this lovely night together."

Pacifica grimaced. Well, perhaps this was a sign that she herself needed to bring reality down hard. She'd rather not deal with this anymore.

"Listen, Charles-"

"Oh! Mr. Northwest! I was wondering when I'd see you!" Pacifica swung around as Charles took notice of her father, whom had finally caught up to her. He wasn't mad anymore. But judging by the look of the giddy smile on his face, she'd rather he was. Charles continued to introduce himself. "Charles Wright, son of Jonathan Wright. I was talking with your fair daughter over here, I hope you don't mind."

Preston waved his hands. "Oh, not at all! In fact, I do say she could use the company! She's been in a rather foul mood all night."

"You don't say?" Charles replied, looking concerned.

"Yes, yes." He knelt down next to him, an evil grin across his face. "Listen my boy… could I have your help with something?"

"Well. This could only mean wondrous things." Pacifica sarcastically thought.

Preston was busy whispering in Charles' ear. Whatever plan her father was concocting could only mean misery for her. She had to put an end to this now.

"Hey-"

"Oh my goodness, how could I forget?" Her father shouted, a little bit too loud. "My wife must be wondering where I am. Pacifica, I'm going to go find your mother, so why don't you converse with Mr. Wright in the meantime?"

Pacifica only gave him the glare of a lifetime as a response, as he left into the crowd.

"So Pacifica, what shall we do first? See what performances are going on in the courtyard? Take a look at Mr. Whimsley's art collection?" Charles suggested.

Pacifica turned his glare on him. "I don't like you. From the moment I saw you, I've been thoroughly unimpressed. Whatever illusions you had of me finding any interest in you are nothing more than that. Now, if you could kindly go away, I can enjoy my night again."

Charles was in silence for a little bit. But before Pacifica could feel satisfied, he shook it off. "Now Pacifica, I know that you've been feeling confused lately. Your father told me all about those peasants that have been interfering with your life."

"He what?"

The rich boy continued. "But I'm sure once you remember how the high-class live, you'll be able to forget those pesky commoners."

"How about instead I just leave?" Pacifica walked away, prompting Charles to follow.

"Wait, my dear! Where are you going?" He asked as he followed her.

"Away from you. So get lost!"

"Come back, Pacifica! Oh, not again…"

* * *

30 minutes earlier...

When preparing to welcome the rich, you have to expect that their entrances can sometimes be very strange. Not flashy, flashy isn't anything to worry about, flashy is typical. But strange, like "seeing a giant Blue Eyes White Dragon Jet bursting over the horizon, and touching down on a private airfield" strange. Not a single one of the airport staff were ready for this kind of strange. Nor were they prepared for the two sitting inside.

As the cockpit opened up, the staff struggled to find any sign of luggage or belongings to take. In fact, other than the cockpit, there really were no obvious openings or places to put anything of the sort. Nothing but the two people in the driver's seat.

As the taller one exited the… dragon, he pressed a button below the cockpit, causing a small compartment to emerge. From it, he took a metal briefcase. Some watching the events unfold gave a sigh of relief. At least he had something. A baggage handler came to take the goods.

"Uh, Sir, do you want me to-?"

"Out of my way."

The employee immediately sidestepped, as if avoiding a dangerous animal approaching him. Other than that command, the man paid no one near him any mind. He was determined to get to the party to do… something, and he made it clear to anybody paying attention that it would be best to leave him alone.

It was only natural for them to be startled as another young man ran past them, catching up to the other. A few inches shorter than the other, he seemed much happier. Or less angry, at least. As the two left to get a ride to the mansion, the workers silently agreed to try and pretend nothing just happened, and did their best to ignore the big draconic jet currently taking up space on their runway.

The younger man snickered. "Boy, we sure do cause a ruckus when we arrive in that thing, big bro." His brother said nothing. "Are you sure only about only staying tonight? This place could be pretty fun."

"I refuse to indulge him. Whimsley's been pestering me for months on end to join this party, as well as others. If he won't take no for an answer over the computer, then I'll make sure he gets the idea face to face. Once I get that out of the way, we head home, Mokuba." He said, without even turning his head.

"I dunno, public embarrassment might not work on the guy. He did practically throw away his dignity begging you to come." Personally, Mokuba Kaiba would've accepted the first offer. The event seemed like fun.

But his brother saw this as nothing more than a pointless annoyance. After all, Seto Kaiba could be very vicious when he was bothered by people he deemed "pathetic". To him, they were the worst kind of people, and deserved none of his respect. "I could care less. He needs to get it through his thick skull that I am not interested in his parties. I have better things to do with my time and money."

A limo pulled up. "Kaiba Brothers!" The driver shouted from his window. "Master Whimsley has been expecting the two of you."

"It would've been smarter not to." Kaiba replied.

As they entered the limo, Mokuba got a text. Once he saw the message, he cringed slightly. The limo driver continued talking. "I'm sorry to say, Master Kaiba, but it seems Master Whimsley had to duck out of the party to see to technical difficulties. He will not be there to greet you."

Kaiba growled. "Of course he wouldn't. He knows I'm only here to tell him off… Doesn't matter. He will get the message tonight, and we will be leaving before the night's over."

"Hey, big bro?" Kaiba looked over to his little brother. "You remember how Whimsley kept trying to bribe us to come?"

"Vividly. Money, rare cards, a tournament… but none of it was worth my time. I have all the money I need, his taste in cards is garbage, and the tournament would've had nothing but amateurs playing." Kaiba chuckled, as if it were a joke. "Shows what happens when you stick your nose in something you know nothing about."

"Well… I think I found his trump card." The older Kaiba brother raised an eyebrow. "You see, it looks like he had one more trick up his sleeve, had we not accepted." Mokuba laughed nervously. "It looks like Yugi's coming. I just got a message from him."

Kaiba groaned. "Of course. He probably caved in on the first invitation. Still, Yugi isn't exactly the richest person, even now. This island's still out of his reach."

"Yeah, I'm curious about that too. Let me ask him." Mokuba fiddled around with his phone, before turning back to his brother. "That explains it. He's one of Whimsley's personal guests for the tournament. All expenses paid. The winner will get a chance to challenge him."

Kaiba scoffed. "He's too soft. All Whimsley wants to do is show off how many famous individuals he's on good terms with. And Yugi knows that too."

"Yeah, he was probably just wanting to be nice." Mokuba agreed, continuing to look at his phone. However, once he looked at his next message, he struggled to hide his shock.

Unfortunately, Kaiba noticed. He sighed. "What now?"

"Uh… well, it looks like Yugi's been giving all the perks of a regular guest. A room in the nicest hotel on the island, access to every single resort, and-"

"Just get to the point, Mokuba." He didn't like where this was going, but it was better to get it over with.

"…and inviting a certain number of other guests to come with him." There it was. "And it looks like Yugi's invited Honda, Jounouchi, and Anzu."

Honestly, once he found out Yugi was invited, he should've expected this. He and his group of friends had split up a few years back to pursue their career paths. Yugi, being the bleeding heart he was, would want to have a reunion.

To be fairly honest, he wasn't on the worst terms with them anymore, but that didn't mean he wanted to spend any inkling of his time with them. They were all just so annoying… He could already see it now. Jounouchi would challenge him (and the idiot would lose again), Honda would sit there and do absolutely nothing, and Anzu and Yugi would create massive sexual tension. "And here I was thinking that tonight wouldn't be completely insufferable."

"Oh come on, you could probably have a match with Yugi while you're waiting for Whimsley. At least that won't be boring." Mokuba said, trying to cheer Kaiba up.

"I suppose." The thought didn't help much.

Once they reached the mansion, Mokuba stuck by the entrance. "I think I'll wait for Yugi and his friends to come. In order to pick up everyone, they had to make a few stops. They'll be here soon though."

"I'm shivering in excitement." Kaiba said, dripping with sarcasm. "I'll call you once I'm done with Whimsley."

"Hope I get to enjoy the hor d'oeuvres at least. Heard they've got really good pigs in a blanket…" Mokuba mumbled as his brother went inside.

Once he entered the ballroom, he noticed the servant next to the entrance, waiting to call out the names of new arrivals. Unfortunately, the servant had not been the wisest. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been the first of Whimsley's employees to get in Kaiba's way.

"Excuse me, sir? Name and industry you're associated-"

"Listen here, because I will only say this to you once." Kaiba glared down the worker. "I'm Seto Kaiba. Your boss has tried to beg and bribe me for months on end to come to this event. I'm here to let him know why he shouldn't do so any longer. So, you're going to go find him or call him and tell him to meet me in the ballroom. Now."

"Y-yes sir. Right away." The worker replied, trembling harshly. Feeling his point was made, Kaiba went on his way. His victim, on the other hand, was dangerously close to soiling himself. Had you listened to the announcer earlier in the night, you would notice his voice would have more power and less cracking. Now? Not so much. "S-seto K-k-kaiba of… of Kaiba Corp!"

Kaiba knew what was going to happen next. Many of the other guests took notice of his arrival. As he walked past, some immediately tried to coerce him into their groups. Others tried to look impressive so that he'd notice them. A select few tried and failed to act like they were above him. He ignored every single one of them.

Leeches and braggarts, the lot of them. Nothing more than a bunch of pathetic losers who kept trying to impress every living thing that moved. Either that, or latch onto someone more popular and feed off of their notoriety. Whimsley was one of them. A charity event this may be, but anyone smart enough to count a few dollars knew that was just a front. What this really was, was a show. A big performance that the rest of the world would gawk at and watch like a baby with some keys.

One would probably say that Kaiba had no room to talk about these people in such a way. After all, he hosts large tournaments all the time that grab people's attention. But the knew that it was actually necessary in those cases. To bring the greatest duelists around, you had to make the greatest tournaments around. And like a Venus fly trap, they'd come and take the bait. And Kaiba would crush them.

To best the best. That's the real thing Kaiba cared about. The fame was just a tool to bring them in. His victory over others was what mattered to him, not the attention. It was that simple.

Or at least, it had been. He would never admit it, but Yugi and his friends made him softer. It wasn't obvious, but those who knew him liked to tease him about it. He used to think the only way to win the game of life was by crushing anyone in your way and never losing. But after everything those four had done around, he had to admit they proved him wrong. There were other ways of getting through the game of life.

And he hated it, because now he had a begrudging respect for them. Yugi was obvious, as he was the King of Games, and yet his strategy and thought process were ones that Kaiba had once thought inferior. Jounouchi he had respected ever since his daring duel with Marik (which he would admit even less likely). And Anzu, though she didn't play duel monsters, had a strong will and brutal honesty. And Honda… well… he was there.

In any case, it was the exact reason why he despised the people trying to get his attention in here. Nothing but lazy louts who thought they had already won. Completely unaware of how the game of life truly worked.

"Well, looks like I'm not the only surprising guest here now." Some of them, however, could be exceptions.

Kaiba was surprised to see Bruce Wayne walking over to him. He thought that of the two of them, the Gotham man would have an even less likely chance of being here. "Hmph. I wasn't aware that you decided to come, Wayne. So you let yourself get roped into this too?"

"Well, the party seemed like a fun opportunity. I couldn't possibly pass it up." He shrugged.

"Drop the act, Wayne. You only ever attend events on your home turf, and rarely do you ever leave Gotham for something as long as this charity event. I know the real reason why you'd be here."

Wayne raised an eyebrow. "Then you might be interested in what brought me here."

"Just because I have no interest in this event, doesn't mean I want to hear about your daring adventures, Wayne."

Wayne closed his eyes knowingly, as if he expected Kaiba to be abrasive. "If it makes you feel better, it'll lead up to something you may be interested in."

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "Fine. I suppose I do need something to pass the time. At least until Whimsley gets out here."

Bruce continued. "I had some obligations that required me to participate." As he predicted. No sane man would pointlessly waste his time here. Wayne could only be on this island if it was for business, not pleasure.

Kaiba snorted. "Some guests are abusing their freedom to plan heinous actions? What a surprise. Who couldn't have seen it coming with the deep security measures this resort employs."

"I tracked them here from some venom exports ordered by them." Wayne said, taking out his phone. "They're here to convene, likely about the next steps of their plot. With the little security Whimsley has for this place, it'll be simple for them."

"So then, Whimsley's even more of an oaf than I thought he was." Kaiba shook his head. "I still can't comprehend his logic. He wants to keep heroes off the premises, yet isn't willing to thoroughly check the more unsavory ones, or even keep an eye on them."

"According to him, he wants to keep his visitor's privacy a priority. He believes if the people on his resort don't feel safe, they won't have a good time. So, no superheroes have jurisdiction, and the resort can't keep tabs on their guests." Bruce's face became more stern.

Kaiba scoffed. "So he wants to keep everyone happy. I didn't realize the man believed in fairy tales."

"I don't buy it. He's got to be hiding something. No one can be that trusting and naive. There's always a chance they could return to their criminal ways."

Kaiba looked up to the sky. "Is that why you always have your little club keeping an eye on me?"

"It's necessary. Especially in your case." Kaiba sighed, prompting Bruce to emphasize. "May I remind you that you created a theme park specifically designed to kill someone and his friends? Not only that, but you kidnapped his grandfather, who was in dire need of medical attention, and hired a serial killer. Don't even get me started on how you acquired your three Blue-Eyes cards."

"You can dwell on what I once did all you want, Wayne, but I've left those events behind. I care little if anyone else hasn't. You included." He wasn't proud of the things he did then, sure. If anything, they proved he used to be a lesser man. Especially with the way he treated Mokuba... but Kaiba never stayed in the past. His interests had changed: that's all that needed to be said. "If you're so scared of me turning crazy again, then you might as well arrest me here. After all, Yugi never pressed charges."

Wayne stared him down. "I think the events succeeding Death-T were punishment on their own. But like Luthor, you have the financial support to try again, should you want to. That's not a risk I'm willing to take."

"Then you're expecting me to become a threat?" Kaiba asked.

"I expect the possibility that you may become a threat. Just as I expect the possibility that anyone else may become a threat. One cannot rule out the chance that such things could happen." He replied with a serious look on his face. "So no, I don't completely assume you'll go back to your old ways. But I'm prepared if that situation arises."

"Whatever helps you become sleep deprived at night, Wayne." Kaiba decided to resume their earlier conversation. "So then, who exactly is it anyway?"

"Four individuals. Two of them still haven't arrived, but the others have. Neither of them have met each other yet. Out of all of them though, the one I think will catch your attention comes from the Northwest family."

Kaiba paused for a moment. "...Northwest of where?"

Bruce shook his head. "It's their name. The head of the family is Preston Northwest. Runs a mudflap factory in Oregon. He's made a surprising amount of money out of that industry."

"Do you want me to be impressed? Sounds more like some kind of horrible joke to me. I guess it could be funny in that regard."

"No." Bruce rejected. "Actually, it's his daughter that you'd find yourself concerned with."

The duelist grunted. "What exactly do you expect to happen when I talk to this girl?"

Bruce frowned. "That girl is in a troubling position, Kaiba. And I think what she needs now more than ever is a kindred spirit." What on earth was that supposed to mean?

Suddenly, a commotion began near the entrance, interrupting their conversation. Whatever it was, it had Bruce's attention. "I think this is something I need to see to. If you're not still here later, then I suppose I was wrong about you two being kindred spirits."

He somewhat hoped Wayne was wrong. He was never smug about being right, but he always expected to be. It was irritating in its own way. Still, Kaiba didn't owe any favors to him. All he was concerned with, was meeting with the host of this event.

"E-excuse me... sir?"

Kaiba didn't say a word, only turning to the quivering worker.

"I'm afraid to say that um, uh... Master Whimsley will not be able to see you for... a-a-an hour."

As if things couldn't get any more annoying tonight. The worker took notice as the gaming mogul clenched his fists.

"I know that your dissatisfied sir, but the technical problems the master is overseeing are top priority. It's crucial he helps with the process." He said, in hopes that Kaiba would understand.

Kaiba turned back away from the employee. "Then make damn well sure there are no other priorities after that."

The man furiously nodded, and shuffled away as fast as he could.

_"An hour. Great... Might as well find somewhere else to go,"_ Kaiba thought. He began to see there was far too many eyes pointed his way. At least it would take awhile for him to be noticed again if he entered another room. Noticing the art room just a small distance away, he figured it would at least be quieter in there, and made his way over.

He had hoped he would be able to get there without someone bothering him, but if this night was any indication, fate liked to rob him of smaller pleasures. A mustached man, currently chatting off about some "regained fortune", stood in his path. Like all the other sheep in this room, he backed away in a panic once he was aware of Kaiba's presence. Now, Kaiba wasn't going to give them an ounce of respect anytime soon... but damn it, he wished they would at least show some kind of backbone. It was one of the reasons why he didn't want to waste his time at events like this. Unless there was someone who presented a valuable business opportunity for Kaiba Corp., then there was no reason to come. Such was the case here. Nothing but spineless idiots waiting to be thrown a bone. If they actually had some fight in them, maybe he would hate them less. Though not likely.

Finally arriving at his destination, Kaiba was satisfied to know that things really were quieter in this room. At least a little bit anyway. Still, there was little else to do in this room other than wait, or look at Whimsley's "collection". Seeing as how he wasn't an art person, he'd have to be content with simply staying here until a better alternative presented itself. Perhaps once Yugi arrived here he could challenge him to pass the time. Or maybe he could just crush Jounouchi again. Seeing that furious look on his face after being completely annihilated in a duel was always an entertaining sight. Plus, maybe Jounouchi would finally get it through his thick head that he could never win against Seto Kaiba.

...No. No. That was about as likely as Yugi bullying someone. Impossible.

"Would you stop following me?!"

"Darling, I wouldn't be following you if you weren't running away from me."

"Don't you think that's the point?!"

So much for peace and quiet. Kaiba had hoped he'd get at least get a little bit of time before the chaos followed here. Following the source of the noise, he found two individuals, both around their teens. One was a blonde girl, currently looking extremely peeved. The other was a sleazy looking boy with black hair. It seemed the boy was trying to calm down the girl.

"Pacifica, I just want to help you, love." Pacifica? The hell kind of name was that?

Pacifica only seemed to get angrier as the boy spoke. "Don't call me that, Wright. There's only one guy I have my eyes set on right now, and it isn't you."

"Oh come now, I'm one of the richest boys in the country!" He said, trying to persuade Pacifica. "What could this other person possibly have that I don't?" He thought for a moment. "Is it Eustace Strych? I hate that boy so much... Well, whatever he's wooing you with, I can do better. Trust me on that."

"I have no idea who that is." She deadpanned. "And it's what this guy isn't that makes me most interested in him. What he isn't, is a shallow showboat who only sees me as a trophy. Unlike you."

"Your words wound me, darling." He put his hand on his heart as if hurt. "Dear, you must give me a chance."

"I won't, and stop calling me terms as if you're familiar with me. you barely know me. Not that I really want you to know me anyway." She replied.

Kaiba noticed that at first glance, she exhibited many traits of the other party-goers. Fancy dress, "correct" posture, and the same kind of atmosphere that all blue-bloods emitted. But she was different from the others in one way: she had a spine. Whatever the argument was about, she was assertive enough that most other people would have stopped trying to convince her at this point. The only reason the conflict hadn't seemed to end was that the other person was clearly an idiot, just like all the rest. But as he had correctly guessed earlier, this only barely interested him more than everything else. not wanting to listen to their screeching voices, he turned to leave the room.

"Pacifica, I only wish to look out for you. Your father asked me to."

"The only thing my father cares about is what I could do to his reputation and I'm glad to know I guessed right about why he left you with me."

Without even realizing it, Kaiba stopped in his tracks and jerked his head back towards the conversation. It was almost as if it was on instinct. His interest in the conversation had increased a lot more. Though the two hadn't said any more than that, and the subject had gone back to the girl trying to shoo away her unwanted admirer.

Half of his brain told him that it was nothing. _"You shouldn't get involved. It's not your concern,"_ It said. The other half though... it pulled him towards the conflict. Yet again, more of Yugi and his friends' infectious attitude making him soft. He cursed himself as his two halves debated back and forth for a little bit, before everything became silent. Taking a quick look at his briefcase, he sighed, before walking over to the two teens.

"Could you two be just a little bit louder? I think the paintings were just about to shrivel up." He said sarcastically, catching them by surprise

Their reactions were very different from one another. While the Wright boy did what Kaiba typically expected, becoming extremely nervous and quiet, Pacifica merely looked slightly confused.

She shook her head. "Sorry sir, but until I get it through his thick skull, I'll need to be as loud as I like."

Wright tried to shush her. "Shh! Pacifica! Don't you have any idea who that is? That's Seto Kaiba, of Kaiba Corp!" He whispered to her. "He's one of the biggest gaming moguls in the world! You need to impress him, for your father's sake."

"Don't shush me." Pacifica asserted. "And if someone requires me to grovel before them to earn their respect, then I don't need it at all."

"Pacifica! You shouldn't say such things!" He turned to Kaiba. "I am so sorry Mr. Kaiba, she doesn't mean it. She's just having a stressful night, is all. Oh, where are my manners? I'm Charles Wright, and this is-"

"I don't care." Kaiba interrupted him. "And if anything, she's right. I have no time for mindless dogs who need all the gratification they get. It's nice to see someone actually has an ounce of dignity in this place." As Charles began to sweat, Pacifica had to hold down a laugh. "What I do care about however, are my own eardrums."

"Er... right. Pacifica, why don't we go somewhere else? We don't want to bother the other guests." Charles suggested to her, reaching for her arm.

She jerked it away, not having any of it. "Thing is Charles, you're bothering me. And participating in any activities with you is far less appealing than being confronted by disgruntled visitors or staff. So with my apologies to the other people in this room, I'm not going anywhere with you."

Charles pinched the bridge of his nose. "Honestly darling, must you be so stubborn? Do you really believe in the words of the common rabble?"

"As much as you don't seem to believe me when I say "go away". Maybe this is why I needed Billy to lead you away from me. You're clearly too thick-headed to take a hint." She jeered.

"Wha... What are you talking about?" Charles asked, in disbelief.

"Oh, you didn't know that? I'm the one who asked Billy to lead you away. I'll have to thank him later, since he kept you away for at least a little bit." Though she had a smug grin, Kaiba could hear the sincerity in her voice as she talked about thanking him.

Charles seemed offended. "Pacifica, how could you do such a thing to me? Do you have any idea how insufferable he was?"

"Can't be any worse than sticking around here with you. Now that's insufferable." She retorted.

As the two argued back and forth, Kaiba was beginning to regret letting himself come over here. He had to end this before it gave them a migraine. "If you two could be quiet for just a moment," The two became quiet as Kaiba interjected. "Then perhaps I can offer your solution." He set his briefcase down on a nearby coffee table, and opened it up. Ignoring the contents of the bottom section for the time being, he opened a small compartment and pulled out a small blue circle. He threw the circle towards the two teens. Before either of them could react, the circle stopped in mid-air. Two smaller circles ejected from the sides, and began to float as well. Then, all three of them started expanding, with the two smaller ones changing shape. The biggest one in the middle only grew wider, and the bottom stretched down to the floor. The smaller ones lowered themselves down, before their backs curved upwards, and also stretched down to the floor. Finally, the middle lit up, and from it, holographic images of chess pieces hovered before them, the surface displaying a chess board. "A good way to solve any conflict... is by playing a game."

"You... want us to play chess?" Charles asked, confused.

"No, I want you to start bashing your head into the table." Pacifica could barley keep the giggles from coming out. For a moment it seemed like he was actually going to do it. Kaiba sighed. "What do you think, moron?"

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a coin. "You," He pointed to Pacifica. "Pick a side."

"It's Pacifica," She noted. "And heads."

Kaiba flipped the coin, ignoring Pacifica's correction. "Hmm... Heads. Looks like you pick who plays which set."

"Um... I guess I'll go with the white pieces." She said. It wasn't the weirdest thing she had seen tonight, but it was enough to be off-putting, that was for sure.

"Forgive me, Mr. Kaiba, but... are you sure it is a good idea to gamble for the solution to this issue?" Charles asked warily.

"A game pits your determination and skills against another person's, Wright." He tapped a part on the table and the pieces rushed into place. "If you don't have the will to win, or in most other cases, just aren't good enough, then you clearly didn't deserve what was put on the line in the first place."

Pacifica pondered on these words for a moment. She had been more than willing to fight and argue with her parents, but beyond that, she was always too afraid to anything else. Expose them? No, she felt they still had a lot of influence and could easily cover them up. Defy them in every single way? No, she was still afraid of that bell on many matters. Could she say she really had a strong will? Did that mean she was really a weakling all this time? She looked at the chess board, slightly disheartened.

Charles took note of this, and reached out his hand. "Pacifica, let's just go back into the party, okay? Let's just give up this stubbornness already."

Give up. Huh. Didn't sound too enticing. If anything, giving up sounded exactly like what Kaiba was talking about. She still wasn't sure if she was really making any victories in her life, but giving up to people like Charles or her father, even once, definitely felt like a loss. She swatted his hand away and steeled herself.

Kaiba noticed this. _"Hmm. She's starting to get it."_ He thought.

Pacifica sat down, glaring down Charles. "My request is already pretty obvious. If I win, you leave me alone. For good."

Charles sighed, and sat down on the other side. "Fine... and if I win, you stop this silly little attitude and come enjoy the night with me."

"Deal," She agreed, and they both looked at Kaiba.

Said man smirked. "Alright then. Begin."

Ten minutes later, and Kaiba was regretting it. Out of all the reasons he set this chess match up, one of them was to get some bit of excitement out of tonight. But this match... it was excruciating to watch. He was expecting amateurs for sure, but these two acted as if they just learned to play chess today. Hell, maybe they did. Though a fair amount of time had passed, both had barely made more than two moves each. Not even a pawn had been taken yet.

Currently, it was Pacifica's turn again. She was contemplating which pawn to push forward. Not even really setting one up as bait, just moving them forward, as if such a simple act with the right one would intimidate her opponent. In the meantime, Wright was taking none of this seriously. He looked at the board with indifference and had no motivation when moving his pieces.

Once Pacifica moved her pawn though, the game began to pick up. Wright moved one pawn a little too close, allowing Pacifica to take it, and marking the first "casualty" of the game. On the reverse side of things however, this seemed to wake Wright up, and his focus on the game increased a little bit more. As time went on, both would start to get a little bit better. With each move, Pacifica became a little more clever, and Wright became a little more motivated. Kaiba took this time to analyze their play styles.

Pacifica's was a mostly defensive style, and a very aggressive defensive style at that. She was good at keeping Wright away, discouraging him from rushing in. But looking a little bit closer, Kaiba could see a flaw. She was far too set on keeping as many pieces of hers alive as possible. She had her special pieces spread thin, protecting her King, but also her pawns. Instead of using her defenses and lesser pieces to lure him in, she was just creating a big wall to keep him out. It was as if she couldn't bear to lose any of them. Not that she hadn't already.

Which brought him to Wright. He certainly had a more aggressive play-style. His efforts were currently geared towards breaking through the giant wall Pacifica had built. At first, he tried to barrel through it, but that ended up costing him a Knight and a Bishop. So he began to chip away at the wall instead. He was kept at a distance most of the time, but every now and then he would snatch a pawn and make a quick get away. If Pacifica didn't change tactics soon, her strategy would soon be turned against her.

Finally, it came to the type of move Kaiba often saw in the middle of a match. Whoever got the upper hand here, would bring the turning point of the game. Wright was geared up to take another of Pacifica's pawns. Depending on what she did, it would either be inconsequential, or her biggest mistake. Trying to protect the pawn would simply give Charles the opening he would need to burst through and overwhelm Pacifica. But if she began using her pieces as bait, instead of treating them all as sacred, she could bring Wright to his knees.

Kaiba could see that Pacifica recognized this. For the first time since the beginning of the game, she went into deep thought. Let the piece be taken, or try and defend it?

Pacifica took the bishop close to the pawn... and moved it away. Though it seemed like a mistake, it brought Wright's attention away from a Knight, which was perfectly capable of taking whatever captured the pawn. Charles, like many an oblivious rookie, took the bait... and found his own piece taken in response. From then on, Charles own strategy was used against him. Any pawn he took, he found himself being ambushed by a piece he completely forgot about. It got to the point where his Queen was taken while he was merely setting up a kill. And with each piece taken, Wright's confidence withered away. It wouldn't be long before-

"Checkmate." Pacifica said, having completely surrounded Charles' King. In response, the boy slumped down in his seat in defeat.

He scrambled to regain his composure. "D-darling, surely you must reconsider..."

"We had a deal, Wright. You need to leave." She said sternly.

"N-no, no, I must honor your father's reque-" He was stopped as Kaiba walked up to him.

"Get out of my sight." For the second time that night, Charles ran like a madman out of the room.

Pacifica looked to him. "Thanks."

"Don't," He rejected. "I only did it because he was beginning to annoy me."

She shrugged. "Whatever. at least the game was... exciting, I guess?"

Kaiba scoffed. "Hardly. It was sloppy and unprofessional."

"Gee, thanks." She said sarcastically. "It's not like I play the game a lot anyway. I just watch a friend who plays. He's into stuff like that, along with Dungeons, Dungeons and more Dungeons. So I'm probably not making that a regular thing."

"And yet you decided to accept the match anyway, not knowing if Wright was a master player or not."

"Yeah, well... It was my chance to finally get him to leave me alone. I'm not just going to let that asshole keep barging into my personal space. He wanted to keep prying, so I showed him why that was a mistake." She said in response.

"I could tell." PacifIca jerked her head back to him in slight surprise. "The way a person plays can often reflect how they think or act." She looked at him in confusion. "You had a very aggressive defense, keeping him from getting too close. Yet, you also wanted to protect all your pieces. Even the most useless ones. Once you finally stopped worrying about the unimportant ones, you were able to back him into a corner."

She thought back to the game, realizing that the game did reflect her own situation. But if that was the case, then what was keeping her from pushing Charles back outside of the game?

Kaiba continued. "As for Wright, he would either chip away at you or try and rush through. Not too off from the way he acted."

"Tell me about it. The guy just can't take a hint." She huffed in agreement.

"Hmph," Kaiba turned away. "Don't try and get chummy with me. I'm only stating facts."

She raised her hands up. "Alright, don't get your cloak into a twist. I'm going anyway."

"PACIFICA!"

"Or maybe not. Hey, um… sorry. There's gonna be a bit more yelling." She walked over to meet the angry voice head on.

Kaiba saw as the mustached man he encountered in the ball room stomped over, eyes solely set on the young girl. "Young lady, it seems we need to have another talk." He said in a seething tone.

"The results are just gonna be the same, dad. Why don't you just let me do my own thing?"

"And let you embarrass the Northwest name?"

...Wait, what did he say?

"If anything, the one making the Northwests look bad is you, Dad."

_"...The one I think will catch your attention comes from the Northwest family." "That girl is in a troubling position, Kaiba. And I think what she needs now more than ever is a kindred spirit."_ Kaiba heard Wayne's words echo in his head. He growled quietly.

"Pacifica, I will not have you bringing anymore shame to this family. You are staying with me from now on." He tried to whisper, but Kaiba could hear him pretty well.

"I keep telling you, I'm not just a trophy for you to show off."

So that was what Wayne meant by "kindred spirits". Personally, he was in slight disbelief. The man looked like nothing more than an idiot. Though he supposed idiots could be the most dangerous type of men.

Time stood still as his mind went through another dispute. Though this one was a little more… detailed.

_"I don't owe anything to her. I've already gotten myself mixed up into her problems. If she wants to make things better than she might as well do it herself."_ A mental projection of himself argued into the darkness.

A man that sounded much more cheery and compassionate rang out from that darkness. _"Kaiba, you know more than anyone that it isn't that easy. She needs someone to help her."_

_"So I need to make a detour and help someone I barely know? And for what, to make you satisfied? I could care less about how you and your friends see me."_ He stated.

_"It's not for us, it's for you."_ The man stepped out, revealing a spiky haired individual he knew all too well. _"You help this girl, and it can help you come to terms with your growing compassion. I know your too afraid to admit how much it's rising in you."_ Kaiba turned his back on the mental image of Yugi, trying to ignore him. _"Honestly Kaiba, ask yourself. Would you want anyone to go through even a fraction of the childhood that you had?"_

Kaiba came back to reality. Looking back at the argument between the father and daughter, he began to feel a sense of déjà vu. He shook his head. He was getting too soft.

This time, however, the two noticed him before they said anything. Preston, if he remembered right, attempted to immediately suck up. "Mr. Seto Kaiba! What a pleasure to-"

"Shut it." Kaiba silenced him, not having any of that right now. "Pacifica, you said that friend of yours played a game called "Dungeons, Dungeons and more Dungeons", right?"

"Oh… Yeah." She nodded. "It's pretty big in the states, from what he's told me. I tend to be more into online gaming, but I've played a few sessions too."

"Interesting. I've had my eyes set on that game for a while. Tell me more." As if by chance, he got a text from Mokuba. "But talk on the way. I have to meet up with someone."

Preston seemed to think this as another opportunity. "Y…yes, Pacifica! Tell him about that game! And while you're at it, tell him about our company-"

"Quiet. You have nothing I want to hear." As he turned to leave, Pacifica followed him, happy that someone was getting her out of this argument. However, Kaiba noticed Preston trying to follow as well. "Go away." He waved him off. "You annoy me."

Only Pacifica looked back as Preston was left behind, wondering what just happened. She gave him a smug smile.

Though she wasn't sure why, she much preferred talking to Kaiba over staying with her father any second longer. He was abrasive and cold… but the same gut feeling Pacifica had with Sam was coming back up when it came to Kaiba. Might as well sate the curiosity as to why it did.

* * *

Preston looked on in amazement as his daughter and Kaiba walked off. "I just don't understand it…" Preston scratched his head.

He jumped when he felt a hand grab his shoulder. "Preston! There you are!" He turned to find his partner, Vlad Masters, staring at him over the shoulder. Preston was about to sigh in relief until he noticed the evil grin on Vlad's face. "I've been looking all over for you. We need to have a little talk." He said through clenched teeth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seto Motherfucking Kaiba. The asshole we all love to hate. Or maybe just love. 
> 
> Now this one's tricky. You should know that i'm not taking from 4kids Yugioh here. I'm not even taking from the Japanese dub. No, I'm taking from the original manga. The batshit insane, torturous shadow game, people-actually-died, holy-shit-Yugi-actually-set-that-guy-on-fire-holy-fuck-it-wasn't-an-illusion, manga. 
> 
> Should you prefer the japanese dub voices or the 4kids voices, that's your choice. Oh, and uh, Kaiba's not the only Yugioh character coming in.


	6. Heroes, Villains, and Duelists, Oh My!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A group of friends have a get together on the island, ready to catch up. Pacifica learns something about one of her newest acquaintances and makes a decision. Danny has a run in with a veteran and doesn't even realize it. Vlad has a very important talk with Preston about pride, and another vile individual joins the party. All the pieces begin to come together...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, technically more guests, but they stick with the "universe" of on of our protags, so I kinda count them together.

"ALRIGHT!" Jonouchi shouted into the afternoon air rather loudly. "Finally outta that stuffy plane and onto solid land! Ultimate vacation, here we come!"

Honda slid up beside him. "No kidding! Look at all that high-class stuff just waiting for us!" He said, gesturing out to the rest of the resort. The two stared at all the lit-up buildings, twinkles in their eyes.

"And yet you two look like you're ready to go to a fast food place." The two of them turned to see Anzu walking towards them, in a beautiful yellow dress. "Was it really too much for you guys to put on tuxes? We're going to stand out like a sore thumb with the both of you in such casual clothing."

Jonouchi shrugged. "What? It's not like it's against the rules. Even if it were, we're practically VIP's! They aren't gonna throw us out cause we're a little underdressed. Besides, I don't do tuxes."

"Yugi's the VIP Jonouchi. We were only able to come because he invited us. If anything, he's the one they won't dare kick off the island." Anzu stated.

"They aren't wrong though, Anzu." Yugi said, stepping out of the plane. He was wearing his latest "usual attire", including purple dress shirt, white vest and pants, and a tie. "It's not a written rule to wear a tux. But Anzu's also right. You two don't want to get into too much trouble. Even Whimsley's staff have their limits."

"You wound me, Yugi." Jono clutched his chest in mock hurt, and Honda did the same. "Hear that Honda? Our friends have no faith in us."

"It's tragic how little they believe in us." The two of them hammed it up.

"Oh, that's enough." Anzu interrupted their performance. "This is the first time we've been all together in a while. We don't want it to be cut short."

They wiped off their "tears" and smiled at them. "Don't worry Anzu, we're only kidding. Trust me, neither of us want to ruin our reunion night." Jonouchi stated.

Honda nodded. "Yeah, we'll be on our best behaviors."

Anzu raised an eyebrow. "I don't know… the release party of Yugi's big game tells me different."

"Hey, that old lady was asking for it." Joey defended himself.

"So many chickens…" Honda shuddered. Yugi and Anzu sweatdropped.

"Well, now that we're together again, we can catch up on what we've been doing. Which reminds me Jonouchi… On the American news sites, I noticed that they call you "Joey Wheeler". What's up with that?" Yugi asked in genuine confusion.

"Yeah, I heard that too, when I was in my dancing class in New York. In fact, they seem to love you up at the big apple." Anzu added.

"Oh, that. I'll tell you about it, but let's head to the party in the meantime." They made their way to an island limo that had been expecting them. Once they got in, Jono continued. "Yeah, that was actually because of something that happened in New York. Remember? I was in town for a tournament, but you also had to play a part in a big show, so we couldn't meet up." Jonouchi noted to Anzu, who snapped her fingers in response.

"That's right, I remember hearing that you made a pretty clean sweep of the competition."

Jono sighed. "Well, almost. The guy I fought in the finals was giving me trouble. And he was a jerk too, in every way."

"Wait, don't tell me you're gonna explain every turn in explicit detail like you always do." Honda stopped Jonouchi before he could start.

Jonouchi tilted his head. "Uh, yeah? Why?" Honda and Anzu groaned.

"Jonouchi, we keep telling you we remember how the game works. You don't need to describe every single move and card effect to us." Anzu explained.

"Oh, come on! You can't tell me you remember how each and every single card works after all this time! Besides, I've gotten new cards since we met last." Joey replied. Yugi simply chuckled at the small argument his friends were having. Truth be told though, he had to admit they had a point.

Honda sighed. "Regardless, it just really doesn't 'sound' as exciting as it might've looked."

Jonouchi put his hands up in defeat. "Alright, I'll compromise with you two. I'll only explain the last few turns, okay?" Honda and Anzu looked at each other before nodding in acceptance. "We good? Alright then, as I was saying…"

**_His name was Jerry, and well… the audience actually kinda hated him too. Probably cause he was one of America's most hated players. And I could tell why during our duel. He had a lot of frustrating cards. It earned him the "great honor" of being called the "Cheap-Shot Duelist"._ **

****

****

**_Now it was one thing to have these cards, that I could handle, but boy did this guy have an ego. He was an elitist jerk who thought he was the next big name in dueling. He even said he could beat Yugi and Kaiba if he wanted to (He rambled pretty long on that point). And to top it all off… he kept demeaning me by calling me "Joey". With all of that added up, I knew I had to beat him. Even if he did have me in a tight spot…_**

_"What's the matter 'Joey'? No more strategies?" Jerry taunted (LP: 2600). Currently on his field was a Dark Blade in attack mode and a **Giant Soldier of Stone** in defense. He currently had no spell or traps on the field, as he had already used them in Jonouchi's last turn. "Too bad. Your Rocket Warrior just lost its chance to take out my Dark Blade."_

_"Would've gotten him if you hadn't played that trap card." Jono's (LP:500) said **Rocket Warrior** was surrounded by two **Scapegoat** tokens in defense. One spell was face down on his field. "But this duel isn't over yet."_

_"Tough words "Joey", but they're wrong." Jerry drew from his deck. "Because now I have all the cards I need to crush you. And the world will finally know how incompetent you really are. I play polymerization! I combine my **Dark Blade** with my **Pitch-Black Dragon** in my hand to create **Dark Blade the Dragon Knight!** "_

_"Eh, I've seen better Dragon Knights."_

_"You won't be so snarky when I add **Fusion Weapon** to him! It increases his attack and defense by 1500 points!" Jono watched as the monster's life points grew immensely, dwarfing any monster he had in his deck. His face however, remained undeterred. "Now 'Joey', I think it's time we showed the world who the better duelist is!" At this comment, the audience began booing, and throwing things in Jerry's direction. Said duelist was now grumbling. "Bunch of ingrates… Go, Dark Blade! Attack Joey's Rocket Warrior! Slice him to shreds!"_

_Jono smirked. "Not so fast! I told you the duel wasn't over! Activate Quick Play Spell- **Roulette Spider**!" The digital form of the card tilted up, and a light burst out. From that light, a small spider with an arrow on its back end emerged, and flew to the middle of the field. Beneath it appeared the image of a large spinner, with numbers from 1 to 6. Meanwhile, Dark Blade had become frozen by an aura of energy._

_"Roulette what now?" Jerry questioned, wondering what was happening. The audience had gasped, and grown silent in tension. "What's going on?"_

_The spider began spinning around, each spot flashing as it went by. "Let me show you, Jerry. See, when you declare an attack on me, I activate Roulette Spider and target that monster. This card has six different effects, depending on which number it lands on. Three of those effects could mean the end of me… but the other three will mean the end for you. All you got to worry about is which number it lands on. It's a pretty risky gamble… but you know what they say- go big or go home." By the time Jono was done, the spider had already begun to stop. Jerry sat there, sweating a bit. Meanwhile, Jonouchi was stone-faced again, focusing intently on the result._

_The spider slowed to a crawl, until it stopped… on the number six. Jonouchi smiled deviously. "Hehe… Ok, Jerry! Say goodbye to Dark Blade!"_

_"What?!"_

_"The effect of number six is that your monster is automatically destroyed!" Said Dragon Knight exploded into digital pixels, unable to resist the spell card's effect. The spider disappeared soon after._

_Jerry grumbled again, this time gritting his teeth. "Hrgh… Whatever! My Soldier of Stone is enough to keep your Rocket Warrior at bay, at least until I get the next card of your destruction. I end my turn."_

_"Sorry Jerry, but I can say that the duel really is over now. I draw…" Placing the card in his hand, he then took a different one from his hand, and placed it on his duel disk. "…and sacrifice my two scapegoats to summon a brand-new monster of mine! **BATTLEGUARD KING**!" As the two spherical goats disappeared, a large ogre in armor burst from the light on the ground, wielding a giant metallic club._

_Jerry was sweating again. "An… intimidating monster to be sure. But my Soldier is still in defense! I won't take damage when your Battleguard destroys it. And Rocket Warrior doesn't have enough attack points to end me this turn! I'll be safe long enough for me to turn things around on my next draw!"_

_"Do you ever shut up?" Jonouchi sighed. "I activate Battleguard King's special ability! By sacrificing any number of Warrior type monsters on my field, my Battleguard gets to attack that many more times!"_

_"…Huh?" Jerry said, a terrified look on his face._

_"Well, that sure got you to be quiet. So yeah, heads up? I'm sacrificing my Rocket Warrior. You know what that means, right?" Jonouchi said with another evil grin. "Battleguard King! Attack Giant Soldier of Stone, then attack Jerry's life points directly!"_

_The giant ogre swung his club around, gaining a pretty high velocity with it until it finally smashed it right into the stone soldier in front of it. The soldier burst into tiny little pieces, and the ogre directed its attention to Jerry, who was now sweating buckets. Swinging its club again, it decided to slam it down on top of the elitist. It was a hologram, so it didn't hurt him physically… but watching his life points fall to zero certainly hurt his pride. "No… I had this in the bag…" The audience began cheering._

_Jonouchi snorted. "You're kidding, right? The moment you started acting all high and mighty, there was no way I was gonna lose to you. I don't take any crap from people who think they're better than everyone." The audience seemed to have heard his words, and cheered even louder._

"After that, my popularity in America skyrocketed. From what I heard, two well-known fans in the duel monsters fandom took Jerry's nickname for me and the Roulette Spider I used and coined it into my new nickname- Joey Wheeler. They brought it to my attention on an AMA, uh… 'PinkieTech' and 'IshiyamaFan10'. And it just kind of stuck." Jonouchi finished.

"Huh. I guess being the underdog really helped you out." Anzu teased, and Joey stuck his tongue out at her. "What about you, Honda?"

"Well, turns out after fixing Jonouchi's duel disk for so many years, I gained a knack for it." Honda followed up the teasing on Jonouchi, earning him a glare. "I left my dad's factory and started a Duel Disk Repair Shop. I've gotten pretty handy with the things, even the newer ones. Doesn't hurt that I actually like tinkering with them. Which is good, since business is lively." Honda gestured to Jonouchi. "And since he likes to come back home to have me repair his duel disk, his popularity gives me popularity."

"Eh, what can I say? I trust you." Jonouchi then proceeded to start grappling Honda in the limo. "Plus, I'm not able to get back at the other mechanics if they throw snarky comments at me!"

Anzu sighed. "I guess it's good they didn't wear tuxes."

Once the two had stopped trying to beat each other up, Jono looked at Anzu. "How about you, Anzu? Any interesting stories?"

"Not really. Dancing school's been pretty good. But I suppose life in New York has been… interesting. Living arrangements went off to a creepy start. When I got to the school, some jerk from a motel across the street started hitting on me."

Jonouchi and Honda grew a bit agitated. "Some creep giving you trouble?"

"Not anymore." Anzu calmed them down. "But yeah, for a while, he had a disturbing fixation on me. He would go onto campus and keep trying to get me to go out with him and would often follow me when I went places."

Jonouchi fumed a bit. "Geez, what an asshole. So what happened?"

"Well, I had a restraining order placed on him obviously. But he kept breaking it. Eventually, I had a friend help me get him caught by police."

Yugi was beginning to shuffle uncomfortably in his seat. He looked rather unsettled by the story. Jonouchi and Honda took notice. "You okay, Yugi?" Jonouchi asked.

"Oh, uh-it's just… I kind of hoped we'd stop encountering people like that after High School. I especially wish Anzu would stop getting bothered by perverts. I don't like seeing her so distressed." He said in a sad tone.

Anzu placed a hand on his shoulder, in an attempt to tell him she was fine now, but also to prevent him from beating himself up. She looked at him sincerely and smiled, which Yugi returned.

Jonouchi and Honda watched the encounter, and Jono begin whispering to Honda. "Oh boy. Sexual tension's beginning anew…"

"No kidding." Honda replied.

Unfortunately, Anzu seemed to have heard that, and shot them an irritated glare. She turned back to Yugi. "So… what have uh… you been doing since last time?" She asked, though her tone of voice made it seem as if she already knew the answer to that.

Yugi looked a bit nervous. "Oh, well… nothing big. Kaiba and I have just been working on improving Spherium. Nothing… nothing else is happening."

The somewhat strange reply got him strange looks from the two other guys in the limo, but they simply shrugged it off. As if on cue, the limo stopped, having arrived at the mansion.

The four of them stepped out, taking in the view of the large building. "Holy crap. How does one guy live in such a big building by himself? It'd just feel weird to me."

"Maybe, but the number of bedrooms does make for a lot of sleeping options." They heard a voice say, and turned to see Mokuba waiting for them. They greeted him with joy, glad to see another old friend.

"Awesome to see you Mokuba!" Jonouchi stated, then looked into the mansion. "So, Kaiba's in there trying to yell at the host?"

"Emphasis on trying. Apparently, the host is off looking into some issues on the island, so now he has to wait. Come on, let's walk inside while I message Seto."

The interior of the mansion was fancy, to say the least. Jonouchi wondered if every single corner of this place had been dressed up. He certainly wouldn't be surprised.

"By the way, where's Ryou? I would've thought he'd be joining you." Mokuba asked.

They all grew a bit sullen at that. Anzu was the one to speak up. "Bakura's been staying with Marik's family. He's been trying to make sure he no longer has any connection to Dark Bakura or the Millenium Ring."

Jonouchi continued. "Poor guy… why couldn't that spirit ever find someone else to possess? We barely see him anymore cause he's so concerned that the spirit will come back somehow."

Yugi spoke up. "He'll be able to move past the pain eventually. We all will. It's only a matter of time before we finally get rid of Dark Bakura's influence on our friendship. Until then, we just have to believe that Marik, Ishizu and Rishid can help him."

Mokuba wiped away his comical tears. "Well, that news made me a little depressed at first, but as usual Yugi, you know how to bring hope back into the picture." Yugi gave him a thumbs up.

As they moved through the ballroom, Honda looked around. "Did we really have to come around the mansion first? Seems pretty boring to me."

"Well, Mr. Whimsley did want me to make an appearance here when I got to the island." Yugi replied. "I didn't want to disappoint him."

"Once again proving that you are far too nice for your own good." Seto Kaiba suddenly said, emerging from the crowd.

"Hey Big Bro!" Mokuba walked up to him.

"Well, well, well. If it ain't rich boy himself." Jonouchi stated. Kaiba simply ignored him, already getting on Jonouchi's nerves.

However, Kaiba did shift his eyes to Anzu in a quick glare. "Anzu."

"Kaiba." She said back without flinching. Kaiba's eyes shifted back to his brother.

"Still waiting on Whimsley?"

"Another one came to me on my way over here. Issues happening elsewhere are taking longer than he thought, according to his employees. I wouldn't be surprised if the whole evening consists of them telling me that "he needs more time"." Kaiba wasn't in as much of a foul mood as Mokuba thought he'd be when saying that. Did something else happen? "Coincidental how it only started when I arrived."

"Wait, wait, wait…" Jonouchi started. "Are you telling me the "Great Seto Kaiba" just admitted to being duped?"

"I was aware he'd do this." Kaiba said without batting an eye. He then gave a smug look. "But it's also only a matter of time before he comes back out. It's not good manners for a host to avoid greeting an important guest."

"False alarm. Still devious as usual." Honda said, as Jonouchi muttered to himself.

Yugi gave a small smile. "Well, I hope you're successful. God knows how hard it must be to find a single person in the middle of all these people here."

That statement seemed to remind Kaiba of something, and he turned his head back to where he came from. Out from the crowd behind him came a young blonde teen in a purple dress. The rest of the group grew understandably confused.

"There you are… Sorry, I got a little lost in my thou-" The girl started, until she noticed the other people near Kaiba. "Oh, uh… hi."

_"Uhhh… Kaiba, who is that?"_ Jono asked. Pacifica noticed they had started to whisper to Kaiba.

_"An associate. We were discussing her knowledge of an American game, so I could see if it was a possible prospect."_

Anzu asked another question. _"Is… is she part of a gaming industry in America?"_

_"No."_

Honda finished up the round of questions on everyone's minds. _"So… why are you talking with her?"_ He glanced at the girl.

_"She's the only one who had an inch of dignity in this place."_ Kaiba said, and left it at that. The three friends looked at each other and shrugged, feeling content with that answer for now.

Mokuba wasn't one to question his brother's methods or choices, so he just decided to introduce himself. "Nice to meet you, Miss…" He asked, walking forward.

"Pacifica Northwest." She curtsied.

Mokuba smiled and took a bow in response. "And I'm Mokuba Kaiba. You were just talking to my big brother, Seto. Don't mind the secret conversation all of them just had, it's just… we weren't expecting my brother to be on okay terms with anyone here."

"It's alright. To be honest, I wasn't expecting to be either."

Yugi and his friends decided to introduce themselves as well. Jonouchi was the first, rushing up and pumping his fist. "The name's Katsuya Jonouchi! World Renowned Duel Monsters player! I've actually gained a lot of popularity in America, ya know."

"I find both of those statements hard to believe." Kaiba added in, though this time Jonouchi ignored him.

Pacifica was a little taken aback by the greeting, especially with the weird face Jonouchi had. Before she could answer, Honda slid in beside Jonouchi. "Hiroto Honda, at your service. Don't worry, I'm the guy who keeps this knucklehead on a leash."

Jonouchi glared back at him. "You know, I could always show you those wrestling moves of mine again." Honda put his hands up while grinning like a madman.

Pacifica finally had a moment to reply. "Uh… good to meet both of you."

A hand came from behind them and pushed the two guys out of the way, as Anzu revealed herself. "Ease up you guys, you're freaking her out." Turning to Pacifica, she extended her hand. "I'm Anzu Mazaki, a dance major. Sorry about those two, they can get a little rowdy, but they're good friends nonetheless."

"Don't worry, I know someone like them from back home. Well, kinda like them anyway…"

Yugi was the last to come up and introduce himself. And the first thing Pacifica noticed was his insane hair. Seriously, how did someone go through life with a hairstyle like that? It had to be weirder than like, 40% of the stuff she had seen in Gravity Falls alone.

"I'm Yugi Muto, game designer. It's a pleasure to meet you." He said with a bright smile.

Whoa. Short guy, deep voice. "So, you're all Kaiba's friends?"

"Well…" Yugi scratched the back of his head whilst chuckling nervously.

"No." The other three friends, as well as Kaiba himself, stated flatly.

That just left Pacifica confused. Why were they so familiar with one another then?

Jonouchi noticed her confusion. "Look, we've been through… a lot together. But we were never on good terms with each other. I'd say we were allies, at best."

"Kaiba can be… very difficult to work with. He's not really a social person." Anzu added. Kaiba simply grunted off to the side.

Pacifica nodded, realizing what that meant. It was like her and the twins against the golf munchkins, or whatever. She had still been in her stuck-up attitude, but perfectly willing to team up with the Pines if it meant not getting killed.

"So yeah, you'll have a better time now that we're around. The four of us had some really insane adventures back in the day. I'm sure we'll have one here too! Maybe you'll even get to see a duel monsters match." Jonouchi cheerfully said.

"Good… to know?" Pacifica said, still not sure what that was.

"It's a card game." Yugi interjected, snatching Pacifica's attention. It seemed he could tell she didn't know what this "duel monsters" was. "A bit complicated, but fun to play once you get the rules down."

Pacifica shrugged. "Eh, probably not my thing. But I know this guy who would be like, super into it."

Before the conversation could continue, the group began to hear shouting in the crowd. "I said go away!"

"You have already proven you are unable to be trusted on your own."

"Yeah, well, I sure ain't entrusting myself to you."

Jonouchi scratched his head. "Now whaddya think is going on over there?"

Honda tilted his head. "Whatever it is, it looks like someone beat us to the disrupting."

As if on cue, Billy Billions burst from the crowd, devilish grin on his face. Unfortunately, he wasn't looking where he was going… and ran straight into Pacifica. "Hey, what's- Pacifica!" He stopped himself before going off, realizing who he ran into. "L-l-look, I'm sorry, but Wright managed to get away from me. He's probably searching-"

"Billy, Billy!" She said, getting his attention. "It's like, okay. I took care of him thanks to Kaiba over there."

Billy hung his head slightly in shame. "I'm sorry, Pacifica, I would've kept him busy but then… wait, did you say Kaiba?" He changed to a surprised look. The Seto Kaiba? His eyes scanned the are around him till he found his target. Sure enough, there he was, paying little attention to the situation.

"Don't worry, I know. Wright told me how he got away from you, and it apparently involved like… cat people? Whatever, I know you were trying your best." She smiled. "Thank you."

"Oh, well, I…you know… s'nothing." Billy said, barely able to keep on the ground.

"Cat people? We missing something here?" Jonouchi whispered to his friends.

"I dunno…" Honda said. Suddenly he adopted a blueblood stature and began talking like a "sophisticated" man. "Let us observe and inquire, shall we?"

Jonouchi matched his accent and stance. "Indeed."

"Oh brother…" Anzu facepalmed, as Yugi chuckled.

"Idiots." Kaiba stated under his breath.

"Ma'am! Please step away from that young child!" Everyone was suddenly stunned at the sight of a tall cat-like man with armor walking towards him.

His words had snapped Billy out of his stupor. "For god's sake, I'm not a little kid! You of all people know that!" He shouted back at him.

"Huh. A cat person. Guess… guess that answers that question." Jonouchi said. Everyone besides Billy had adopted shocked looks on their faces. Even Kaiba's eyes had widened slightly. "It… raises a few million more, though."

He walked up to the group. "I apologize, but I must warn all of you that this person is a dangerous criminal. I would advise you to keep your distance, to be safe."

Jonouchi raised an eyebrow. "Dangerous criminal? How the heck can this kid be dangerous, Mister…"

"Rook Blonko. Though most on earth call me Rook."

"Most… on earth?" Anzu blinked.

Jonouchi had focused on something else. "Rook… Blonko… why does that sound familiar?"

"Not the point. What do you mean by him being like, dangerous?" Pacifica asked, not fazed by Rook being an alien.

"Billy Billions is a known criminal. He has attempted to inflict harm unto my partner numerous times using his knowledge of robotics. In fact, he had been arrested last week for teaming up with several other well-known villains, whom he then proceeded to fight with over… leadership issues." Rook looked over to Billy, looking like he just had his hand caught in a cookie jar.

Jonouchi was still thinking to himself. "Okay, I know I heard that from somewhere…"

In the meantime, Billy's attention turned to Pacifica, who had a hurt expression on her face. Before he could try and say anything to her, another voice rang out.

"Rook! There you are!" Ben had emerged, yelling out to his partner. Julie was close behind. "We got your message and ditched the robo-cheerleader."

"I found him trying to converse with this group." He gestured to Pacifica and the others.

Julie herself looked over the group, until her eyes stopped on Pacifica. "Ben, that girl…" She whispered to her boyfriend. "I recognize that hair and dress. It's the girl that bumped into him earlier."

"You're right… man, I was kidding when I asked if he was going after her. Didn't think he held grudges that bad." Ben sighed.

While that conversation was going on, Mazuma jumped out over the three of them and landed next to Billy. "Forgive me, Mr. Billions. I could not prevent them from finding you."

"Uh huh." Billy replied half-heartedly. Mazuma noticed how he was lacking his usual energy.

"Mr. Billions…"

Throughout all of this, Yugi and his friends (and Kaiba) were simply watching all of this unfold.

"Well…" Anzu broke the silence among them, despite not being able to comprehend this. "This party certainly got livelier. I guess…"

Yugi tilted his head slightly. "And I thought all of the stuff concerning Atem was complicated."

Honda had gone completely stiff, as if frozen in place. "Jonouchi… Jonouchi, are you seeing this?" He nudged his friend on the shoulder.

"Hang on a sec, I'm trying to remember where I heard all that stuff from before." Jonouchi said, clearly not paying attention.

"How bout you look over here instead?" Honda placed his hand on Jonouchi's head and turned it to look at Ben.

It took him a few seconds to fully grasp who he was looking at. At first, Jonouchi thought he was just looking at some random guy. But as he recognized the various traits- the shirt, the green eyes, and most especially the watch on his wrist- realization dawned on him.

"HOLY HELL!" Jonouchi shouted, causing everyone around him to jump. "IT'S BEN TENNYSON!"

"Ah, crap…" Ben said under his breath, cringing. "And here I thought I'd get away from this while I was here."

"Uh, Jonouchi?" Anzu asked. "Who's Ben Tennyson?"

"You're kidding, right? C'mon Anzu, you've been living in America for the last few years! You're telling me you've never heard of Ben 10?" Anzu shook her head in response. "He's only one of the greatest up and coming superheroes in the field! The guy who can transform into the right hero for any job!"

"Heh. Yeah, that's me…" Ben confirmed, putting on a weak smile. He was interrupted by his girlfriend tugging on his sleeve, her face looking like a deer in the headlights. "Hmm? What is it, Jules?" He followed her line of sight to the excited fan, whom he was now finally getting a good look at. His face went through the same spiritual journey that Jonouchi's had, until he adopted the same excited look. "No way… NO WAY! YOU'RE JONOUCHI KATSUYA!"

Jonouchi whirled his head around. "You know me?!"

"You know me?!" Ben responded.

"Honda and I have seen you duke it out with the bad guys on TV all the time! You're like a card game all on your own with all the heroes you have!"

"Me and my girlfriend Julie have seen all your matches! Even the ones back in Duelist Kingdom! You're like the greatest underdog ever!"

Honda pointed at Julie. "That must mean you're Techno-ranger Julie!"

Julie pointed back. "And you're Jonouchi's duel disk engineer, Honda!" The four of them proceeded to continue geeking out over each other, as their friends looked on.

"…What am I watching right now?" Mokuba asked, not sure what to make of it.

"I don't know, but I hate it." Kaiba said, getting fed up with the constant yelling.

Yugi looked at Anzu. "I guess even celebrities can be star-struck with one another."

Said girl looked exasperated. "It's like one strange event after another right now."

"Your reaction is very similar to mine, actually." Rook walked over, observing the situation with an equal amount of confusion. "I have never seen the two of them act this way before. Perhaps you could enlighten me as to who your friend is, so that I may understand better."

"Of course." Anzu agreed. "But… can you tell us who Ben Tennyson is, in return? Neither of us really keep up with all the superhero stuff."

"I will be happy to." He gestured to Ben. "That is Ben Tennyson. Around 7 years ago, he found the alien device known as the Omnitrix. It allows him to turn into different aliens with their own unique powers. And next to him is Julie, his girlfriend. She…" He paused for a moment, as if hesitant to go on. "…has a substance on hand that allows her to bond with mechanical objects. She can upgrade and control them as she sees fit. As for me, I am a Revonnahgander from the planet Revonnah, and a rookie Plumber."

"Plumbers?" Anzu found that strange for a moment. "Wait, no… in New York. There was some kind of special force working alongside the superheroes when they fought off an alien threat once. They called themselves that."

"Yes, they are the one and the same. I believe you are referring to an Incursean attack about a year ago. Ben himself actually worked with a few low-ranking Justice League members to defeat them. And of the numerous world-threatening attacks in recent years, Ben and his allies have had more than a hand in stopping a few."

"That's pretty amazing." Yugi looked back to his two excited friends. "I can see why Jonouchi and Honda are so ecstatic to meet them."

"Jonouchi and Honda… I apologize, but may I ask who whom is?"

"Jonouchi is the blond one. He's a professional Duel Monsters player. And Honda, the one with the triangular hairstyle, is his duel disk engineer." Anzu stated, then pointed back to Yugi and herself. "I'm Anzu Mazaki, a dancer in training. And this is Yugi Muto, professional game designer. The aloof guy over there and the young man next to him are Seto and Mokuba Kaiba, respectively. They own one of the biggest gaming companies in the world."

"You mentioned… Duel Monsters? Is that why my partners are so excited?"

"It's a card game." Yugi took out a deck he had on hand and gave it to Rook. "It's become quite popular as of recent. And thanks to Kaiba's technology, the duels can be projected with holographic monsters. It can get very exciting."

"I see. Intriguing artwork… and many in-depth descriptions." Rook noted as he analyzed each card. "I can understand why they would be so interested in this card game. Though I do wish I could see one myself, to understand fully."

Yugi smiled. "You might be able to. I was invited to face the winner of a tournament later this week. From the looks of it, your two friends will probably be attending."

"I will treat it as a learning experience." Rook smiled back. However, he was also thinking something else. _"This man has a very deep voice for his size."_

They had finished introducing each other just in time to jump back into their four friends' conversation. "Aw, come on, that victory was nothing. I've beaten creeps like him tons of times." Jonouchi said, trying not to seem very flattered, despite obviously being very flattered.

"Yeah, but he had an underhanded strategy that duel. And you still won anyway!"

"Well, you know…" Jonouchi's eyes popped open in surprise. "Say! That's where I remember all that stuff!" He pointed at Rook. "You're that rookie guy that joined the team recently! You beat those crooks up with your bare fists sometimes!"

"…Is that bad?"

Anzu smiled. "Don't worry. I can't speak for everyone that would mention it, but coming from Jonouchi, it's a good thing." Rook seemed to relax a bit.

Jonouchi continued to refresh his memory. "And Billy Billions! He's that villain that got stuck in a killer robot dimension for five years!"

Pacifica's head perked up, stunned by that info. "Huh?"

Julie noticed her piqued interest and went on to clarify. "Yeah. So what happened is, he got jealous of Ben's popularity back when they were kids, and decides to shoot him with a dimensional transportation ray. But Ben ended up turning into Diamondhead and reflected it right back at him by accident. So instead, he's the one who got transported to Dimension 12 for about five years. When he got back, his body growth was stunted by the weird time distortion in Dimension 12, and he blames everything on Ben."

Ben continued. "He shot me and my team with a kid ray, then tried using an army of Dimension 12 robots to intimidate all the people he believed wronged him. He lost control of them instead. And just last month, he teamed up with a bunch of old enemies of mine to act as a hero team and make me look bad."

Though a few words threw her off, she mostly got all of that. Pacifica went into deep thought about the situation. It was true, she was definitely angered by the fact that Billy was indeed a villain. She had enough problems already dealing with one sinister rich moron in her lifetime. However, something about it all struck a chord in her. There was no justifying what Billy did… but it almost seemed as if he was extremely desperate to get some form of attention. She could've been wrong… but as a kid, she would often bury herself in the attention she got from others. It helped distract her from the fact that her parents never really seemed to care what she did.

Pacifica wasn't sure if she would regret this, but… she was going to take a risk.

Meanwhile, Billy looked as if he was ready to pull his hair out. Things were already bad enough, and now Pacifica knew everything. She'd never want to see him again!

"Billy?"

He jumped at his name being called. Turning his head, he found Pacifica's attention on him, and she had a slight look of distress. He gulped. "Y-y-yeah?"

"I'm a little upset at all this information. But despite that… I wouldn't mind hanging out with you again. On ONE condition." She emphasized.

Billy's heart and joy suddenly elated. He had to keep himself from bursting out in joy. "Yeah?!"

"You call a truce with Ben over there."

"Ye-huh?!" Billy's face twisted into that of confusion. Now he didn't know how to feel at all.

"Look, I get the feeling that either directly or indirectly, he's going to be hanging around with me or one of the other people here I just met. And that means that if you hang with me, you're gonna see him a lot. I really hate it when guys start pointless fights, so I need you to promise me you won't start anything…" She looked at Ben. "…on the grounds that he won't either."

It wasn't just that, though. As she learned herself, hanging out with your worst enemy on neutral terms could turn things around. If the two of them had to hang around the vicinity of one another, there was a possibility that maybe, just maybe… they would manage to bury the hatchet, and Billy could change for the better.

Granted, it was hoping for a miracle. The instances she had with the Pines twins could have been special cases. There was no certainty that things would get better on any angle, never mind them becoming friends of any kind. But, well… it was something. At the very least, it would show her if Billy realized exactly what his villainous actions had entailed.

Ben snorted, as Rook moved over to his partners. "Sorry, but there's no way Billy would agree to that. He has it out for me." Ben was confident in that… until he noticed Billy walking up to him. The boy genius was shaking, as if struggling. Ben raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"You heard her." He said through a clenched smile, bringing his hand out for a shake. "D-d-do we… do we have a truce?!"

Ben and his team went completely slack-jawed, and Mazuma sparked a little. None of them could believe that Billy was going through with this. It didn't make sense.

"Well? My arm's getting tired."

Ben snapped out of it and shook his hand. "Uh… I guess?"

Billy yoinked his hand away. "Good enough for me." He walked back over to Pacifica, and gave a thumbs up.

She smiled. "Thanks, Billy." Almost immediately, Billy became very imbalanced, and swayed in a daze.

"Oh, you know… It's no problem."

Jonouchi was slightly bewildered, since he knew who Billy was, though not to the extent as Ben and co. "Huh. Don't see a villain do something like that every day."

Julie looked back and forth from the exchange between Pacifica and Billy, and specifically noted how Billy was acting. She slowly pieced everything together, realizing exactly what had happened to the billionaire. "Ben…" She whispered in her boyfriend's ear, letting him know what she found out.

Ben's look of confusion changed to a slight smirk, amused at the situation. "Huh… whaddya know."

* * *

As he traversed the halls of the massive mansion, Danny Fenton grumbled to himself, much of it having to do with Vlad and how frustrating he was. He'd been called by Sam earlier about her encounter with the insane fruitloop, and things already weren't looking good. Not only did they not know where Vlad was at this point, but they had lost the element of surprise, and Vlad would start to take full advantage of the island's security now that he knew they were here. They were losing their chance to catch whatever Vlad was planning, and fast.

To top it all off, there'd been a subtle tone in Sam's voice, one Danny knew too well. Something stressful had happened to her while she was searching for Vlad, and she was obviously trying to hide it. The two of them were already dealing with his arch-nemesis, and now some assholes had gone and upset Sam? If it were any other place, he'd have possessed them and made them do something embarrassing. But for now, he'd have to settle on just helping her feel better.

He had decided to stop and think about just how screwed the plan was. He'd been trying to find Vlad, in hopes of possibly salvaging what advantage they had left, but since they didn't know where Vlad had gone, he might as well have been looking for a needle in a haystack.

While he was deep in thought, he wasn't aware of the billionaire looking at him out of the corner of his eye.

Bruce had been monitoring calls and other communications around the island on his phone, which had been outfitted with his own personal tech. It could easily go unnoticed even by Whimsley's best security measures. With it, he had been able to eavesdrop on his targets, and their various texts and calls between each other. However, the other thing he'd picked up was a strange background signal. It could almost go unnoticed by most radar… almost. With Bruce's tech it was perfectly traceable. And it seemed someone else was trying to lock on to that frequency- Whimsley's machines most likely. Kaiba did mention that Whimsley had ducked out of the party for a short time. Likely, his engineers needed his assistance tracing the signal.

At first, Bruce wondered if he should ignore it. But if there was anything he learned over the years, it was that even small unforeseen factors could cause massive consequences. Whimsley might be spooked into increasing security if this person were to be caught. He traced the signal to determine whether that source would cause trouble. He was expecting another supervillain, planning their own schemes while at the party. What he wasn't expecting… was Danny Phantom.

He knew Danny well, even if the teen didn't really know him. The Justice League had spotted him among many other young superheroes and listed them as potential future league members.

And if he was here, it was no secret why. Even before this whole venom shipping incident, Batman had discovered exactly who Vlad Masters really was. Danny was likely here to try and stop his nemesis from whatever evil plot he had.

How he was able to get here was obvious too. The Mansons had been listed as one of the families invited to the party, and Danny clearly saw that as an opportunity to get up close to his enemy. But that had proven to be overconfidence. Fenton had no idea how in over his head he was. Preston was little to worry about, but Vlad's other two partners were both dangerous veterans in the business.

The first was Princess Morbucks. She was only a little girl when she first started out, and a spoiled one at that. She would simply ask her father for high-tech suits and weapons, never really knowing how to use them to their full potential (which was a good thing). All she ever cared about was upstaging the Powerpuff Girls. But as the Powerpuffs got older and wiser, so too did some of their enemies. Princess in particular had a strange encounter with Lex Luthor himself. Whatever Luthor said to her that day, and whatever it was the man saw in that spoiled brat, changed her for the worse. She reportedly left the country for a boarding school afterwards, before coming back a few years later. Suddenly, her father died of a "mysterious ailment", and she inherited the company. Putting on a good girl act, she won over much of the town, all the while fighting her old enemies from the shadows. And that was only the tip of the iceberg…

The other was one of the members of freelancer hero Kim Possible's rogues gallery, Monty Fisk. Or as he preferred to call himself- Monkey Fist. The man was obsessed with the various monkey artifacts of the world, and the mysterious powers that could be endowed with them. He had gone on multiple excursions to steal these artifacts, whether they be from museums or the very countries they belonged to. His case in this operation was a bit more complicated however. The other rogues in Possible's gallery had actually pitched together to operate in this plan, with Fist acting as their "wealthy benefactor". He had yet to work out what the others were doing in this plot, but he could guess that it had to do with the venom shipments.

Both of them were far more experienced in dealing with superheroes, even more than Vlad. Not to mention that whatever equipment Danny was using was sending Whimsley's staff into a mass frenzy. If this kept going, Danny would be caught, and trouble would be sure to follow. Luckily, he had a plan.

Danny had been so wrapped up in his thoughts, he didn't even realize who he was about to bump into. And then, tragedy.

"Oof!" Danny was sent onto the floor by the collision, as if he had hit a human wall. While he rubbed his head, wondering what just happened, a hand extended out to him.

"You alright there?" Danny finally regained his bearings and took the hand. "Sorry about that. I guess my posture is stronger than I thought."

"It was my fault. I wasn't looking where I was going." Danny said, finally back on his feet. "I'll make sure it won't happen again, mister…"

"Wayne."

"Mr. Wayne." Danny repeated. Suddenly, he did a double take. "M-Mr. Wayne?!"

"Yes."

_"Welp. I'm dead, and now I'll have twenty generations of familial shaming."_ Danny thought to himself. "I'm honestly sorry, Mr. Wayne, it was an honest accident."

"Now that doesn't seem right. If you were so wrapped up in your thoughts that you didn't notice me, you must've been up to something. What are you doing at this party, young man?" Bruce said with a scrutinizing stare.

"Uh-I-um, I mean…" Danny stuttered, starting to sweat.

Mr. Wayne chuckled. "I'm only messing with you. Don't worry, young man. I'm not here to chastise anyone for taking a simple misstep."

"Oh." Danny felt just a slight bit foolish.

"I will say though, you do look familiar…" Mr. Wayne raised an eyebrow. "Have I seen you somewhere before?"

"I'm… sure it's just a coincidence of some kind."

"No, no, I remember your face…" He closed his eyes in thought. "…That's it! You're Maddie and Jack's boy. Danny Fenton."

His head shot up. "You know my parents?"

"They went to a Gotham science expo a little over a year ago. Their technology and research were quite fascinating. I was surprised that they were able to use those ghost's own energy source as weapons against them."

"Ah, well, you know." He scratched the back of his head. "Ectoplasm kinda works like snake venom."

"So it seems. Does that mean that you know Vlad Masters as well?"

"No." Danny said bluntly, taking Mr. Wayne aback slightly. "Uh… I mean, our family doesn't really talk to him. My parents aren't in the ghost hunting biz to capitalize on weapons trading and aren't too fond of him for doing so."

"Hmm. I suppose I can understand that." He looked around the room of the mansion. "Though there are places that could use it. For instance, Vlad actually donated some equipment to Horace Whimsley to assist in the security measures of the island."

Danny's heart dropped into his stomach. "He… he what?"

"You heard right. From what I've been told, he believes that there's no telling when or where a ghost can show up. Perhaps a little paranoid, but I guess you can never be too sure."

"R-right." Danny said calmly. In truth, he was panicking on the inside. _"That means this whole time we might not have been as secret as we thought! Tuck made the equipment to be untraceable, but that was only concerning regular radars! It might still be hard to find it, but if Vlad gave them any kind of ghost tracking equipment, it won't be too long before they'll be onto us. This is bad…"_

"Still, I just can't understand why he would pair himself with a world-renowned criminal, and a former one." He shrugged. "Perhaps he believes he can help them."

"I mean, if there's one thing we Fentons know about Vlad, it's that he's capable of handling himself." Not exactly a lie, as he was pretty sure Vlad could handle the two villains under his employ.

"Even so, I'm not sure I could ever feel easy being around his two partners. Preston Northwest, definitely. But Monty Fisk? The man has been all over the world, stealing priceless artifacts for their mystical powers. He's even gone toe-to-toe with Kim Possible, the famous freelancer agent. Who could ever feel easy around him?" His eyes trailed off to the side. "And I would feel even more nervous around Princess Morbucks. The girl goes to a boarding school funded by Lex Luthor, then comes back and takes over her father's company when he suddenly dies. Considering the circumstances, I'm inclined to believe the Powerpuffs' accusations against her."

During this ramble, Danny's confidence had begun to plummet. He had been so sure about Vlad's involvement, that he was the brains of the operation, and the other two villains with him were little more than extra muscle. But as Mr. Wayne mentioned more and more about them, he slowly began to realize… these weren't just bad guys being paid by Vlad. These were expert hardened criminals, who had more than enough experience dealing with heroes. They weren't his lackeys, they were his partners. And with that, it became very evident to Danny that he was in over his head.

He needed to rethink his approach.

Mr. Wayne noticed him staring into space, knowing full well what he was thinking about. He had to know what kind of situation he was really in, and just how dangerous his enemies were. He got his attention again. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ramble. I tend to go off when it comes to business matters."

"H-huh? Oh, uh, it's no issue Mr. Wayne. I was just thinking. I see your point though." Danny said, unsure where to take the conversation next.

Luckily for him, Mr. Wayne checked his watch. "Well unfortunately, it looks like my time is up. There's an old friend I've been planning to meet up with again. It was nice meeting with you, Mr. Fenton." He offered a hand.

Danny shook it, looking a slight bit happier. At least he got some good information out of this encounter. "Ah well, I'm good with being called Danny. And it was nice to meet you too." Mr. Wayne nodded before taking his exit. In reality, he was still paying attention to Danny's actions, as he started whispering into his earpiece. _"Sam. Sam! Meet me in the ballroom. We need a plan B, and fast!"_

Bruce looked at his watch again. It had been outfitted with tech meant to track certain frequencies, those of his targets, and route them to his own phone. That way he could observe the conversations and plans of Vlad and his associates. However, it was also capable of hiding frequencies, like that of his own devices. The conversation he had with Danny was not only meant to deter him from rushing into a bad situation, but also so the watch could lock onto the frequency of his earpiece. As he looked on the small holographic screen emitted from his watch, he hid Danny's communications from the island's detection equipment. With any luck, Whimsley and his crew would believe the extra signal to be a glitch of some kind and become less suspicious of it.

With that out of the way, he knew it was time to find his "friend". He hadn't been fibbing about that. Monkeyfist had yet to arrive at the mansion itself, so he still had time. Danny hadn't been out of the woods just yet, and he knew just the person that could speak to the ghost hero face-to-face.

* * *

Preston was sweating as if it had been 100 degrees. Across from the table sat Vlad Masters, who was currently staring him down. His face was seemingly emotionless, but Preston knew it was really silent rage.

He stared at Preston for what seemed like hours, stirring the drink he had gotten for himself. Preston had started counting, in an attempt to make himself less nervous. He had reached about 37, when Vlad finally spoke.

"Interesting party, isn't it?"

Preston gulped. "Uh, yes. It sure is, Mr. Masters."

"However, the atmosphere is quite… sickly. Unpleasant. Unbearable, even. Shall I go on?"

"N-no, sir."

"And Preston… do you know why the air around feels so sickly?"

Preston noticed Vlad only seemed to get angrier when he took more than a second to reply. But he honestly didn't know why Vlad found the party so bad. "N-no. No, sir, I don't know."

Vlad immediately slammed his fist onto the table. "It's because everywhere I go in this mansion, I keep hearing nonstop talk of how Preston Northwest "jumped back" from nothing! You blabbering idiot! You were supposed to keep a low profile!"

Preston had shrunken in his seat a bit. "B-b-but Mr. Masters, it was nothing but idle chitchat… just a conversation piece."

"No, it's trouble! Let's pretend that there aren't a sizable number of goody two-shoes billionaires who have a sense of "honor", and would become very suspicious of your story, shall we? The rest of those morons out there are prone to gossip and will spread your story around like wildfire. The more you put your "victory story" in the limelight, the more attention it gets! Which is exactly what we don't need!" Vlad pointed at Preston accusingly. "You were brought onto this project to make it look inconspicuous, not drive more attention to it!"

"Right…" Preston tugged at his collar. "Is… there anything I can do to-?"

"No, you've clearly done enough. Which includes attempting to keep your daughter within arms' length."

"What? But sir, I must keep her on a leash! She's become so rebellious as of late, I have to prevent her from tainting the family name!"

Vlad stood up. "That's exactly the reason you need to have her as far from our meetings as possible! She doesn't exactly hold our interests right now, does she? If she were to find out what we were doing, she may try to expose us!"

"That won't happen sir, I swear!" Preston said, in an attempt to calm Vlad down. "I have her under my thumb."

"I have very many reasons to doubt that." Vlad turned away. "You know, Preston, it occurs to me that you might not be taking this seriously. Perhaps I won't help you tighten your grip on that backwater town of yours after all."

Preston went into a panic. "No, Mr. Masters! Please! I will keep my mouth shut from now on! Oh, and I'll keep my daughter a good distance away from our meetings! Just please, don't break our deal!"

Vlad whirled back around, moving right into Preston's face. "Get. It. Done. Tell your daughter she's free to do whatever she wants. I'm sure she'll be more than eager to do that away from you." Preston had almost reached the door when Vlad stopped him. "And keep your damn mouth shut about your wealth. Got it?" Preston nodded furiously before quickly exiting the room. Vlad gave a sigh before taking his drink and walking over to the nearby window. Before he could begin drinking it, he heard the door open again. "Oh, what is it now, you blithering idiot?"

"Call me that again, and not even your ghost form will regenerate from what I do to you." The young, feminine voice replied.

Vlad turned to see a curly, red-haired woman, giving him the glare of a lifetime. "Hmph. Apologies, then. I thought you were that Oregon Oaf."

She crossed her arms. "I kept telling you it wasn't worth it to have a fall man on a job like this, Vlad. Are you really going to let him off easy, and risk letting him mess everything up for us?"

"Of course not. I'd had my limit with him a long time ago. I've already begun setting him up to be framed for "stealing" from me. The public will divert their attention to him, while we mop up any signs that we were part of it, and any signs that he had a hand in something bigger."

"That still doesn't change what he's already done. If we hadn't picked him up in the first place…"

Vlad placed his drink back down on a nearby coffee table. "He seemed decent at the time. Dumb enough to be manipulated, yet smart enough to follow orders. I hadn't realized that feeding him fame and wealth would be like giving a reforming addict some heroin. Regardless, I'm handling it now, so drop the subject, your royal highness." The last word was lined with slight ire.

"I told you to stop calling me that."

Vlad put his arms up in mock defense. "Oh, I'm sorry. But you'll forgive me if I think the name _Princess Morbucks_ isn't any more dignified of a title."

"I suppose that's understandable, Vlad _Masters_." She stated with a smug grin. Vlad gave a scowl in response.

"In any case, we have to wait until that buffoon gets back before we continue. He's still part of the plan." He took out his phone. "Speaking of waiting for someone to arrive, where is that simian-obsessed fool anyway?"

"Monkeyfist is making some calls to the rest of Kim Possible's rogues gallery. You know, to make sure everything is running smoothly on his end? Like what I've been doing? And what you were supposed to be doing?"

"Ah, forgive me. Perhaps next time I'll have one of you babysit Northwest and see how well you handle it." Vlad was quickly becoming fed up with Princess' attitude, though he buried his irritation to stay professional. "But I digress. Don't stray too far away. The sooner we meet, the sooner we can discuss the actual problem I told you two about."

"Fine. But I'm warning you, Vlad. If this goes sour, I will drag you down with me. Be sure of that." She threatened, before slamming the door.

Vlad massaged his temple. Thanks to an encounter with a certain Metropolis megalomaniac years ago, that girl had gone from 'idiotic spoiled brat' to 'Luthor's greatest student'. He knew very well that Princess' threats were more than just bark nowadays.

"My migraine is only going to get worse before it gets better..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep! Yugi and friends. I go by their japanese names, but if you need clarification:  
> Anzu=Tea Gardner  
> Jonouchi=Joey Wheeler  
> Honda=Tristan Taylor


	7. Mix and Mingle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam solves her and Danny's problem thanks to a new friend she made. Unfortunately, she doesn't get along with all of Pacifica's other new friends. Pacifica gets a surprise visit from her father, and gets a surprising offer from him as well. Bruce Wayne decides to ask Ben Tennyson for a favor. Unfortunately, Ben may not take as well to a different offer by Bruce. And something odd happens to Yugi... something that makes Pacifica's skin crawl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's where most of our guests finally come together. The gang's all here, and boy are they weird!

"So let me get this straight. Not only do we have to deal with Vlad, but also a Luthor-in-training that constantly combats three of the strongest heroes on earth, and a monkey man from the rogues gallery of one of the world's greatest super-spies?" Sam asked, taking all the info in.

"Yeah. That's… pretty much how it goes." Danny sighed.

"How are we supposed to fight three expert supervillains at once?"

"We can't. Especially not when our equipment wasn't as untraceable as we thought." He collapsed into a nearby chair. "I thought for sure I'd finally gotten this superhero thing down. Looks like life proved me wrong again."

Sam placed a hand on his shoulder. "Keep it together, Danny. Let's at least think about our next step."

Danny grasped her hand in return. "…Ok. Alright. So, we're sitting ducks out here. I'm pretty sure Vlad could have ratted us out the island's security, but he just wants to see us squirm. And even though Mr. Wayne mentioned how Vlad gave the island ghost fighting technology, it looks like they haven't fully implemented it yet. Otherwise they probably would've caught our "ghostly" radio signals the moment we turned on our equipment. It's best if we turned off our earpieces from here on out."

"Right." Sam turned hers off while thinking through their decisions. "So… with all that info in mind, where do we go from here?"

"Honestly? Not a clue. I guess if anything we should find a way to keep our heads down… the problem is, the only people we can stick around to do that are your parents."

Sam winced at the thought. "Not happening." She pondered some time to herself, and Danny did the same. Her parents weren't an option, but who the hell would hang out with two random kids and cover for them? …Wait… "Danny, I think I know someone who could help keep us inconspicuous."

"You do?"

"Yeah. The only problem is, I'm not sure how we'll find her. She could be anywhere in this mansion."

"Well, what does she look like?"

"Let's see… blond hair shaped into a long-haired beehive, purple dress with dark fluff outlining it, and purple gloves to match…"

Something caught Danny's eye, as he leaned to the side to get a better look. "Uh… is she hanging out in a large group over there?"

Sam turned her head in the same direction her boyfriend was looking. Sure enough, there she was, talking with multiple people. "Huh… yeah, that's her. That's… an odd coincidence."

"I'm starting to think nothing at this party is a coincidence." Danny stood up and straightened his suit. "So, who exactly is she?"

"She helped me out earlier. Some she-demons targeted me to feel good about themselves and she scared them off. She seemed oddly genuine about being nice."

"I don't suppose that has anything to do with how you were feeling when you called me, would it?"

"It would, actually. But yeah, if anyone here can help us keep a low cover on short notice, it'd be her."

He gestured towards the group with a smirk. "Well then, Ms. Manson. Would you like to introduce me to your new friend?"

Sam smiled back. "Of course. Follow me, Mr. Fenton."

As they drew closer, they could hear a few conversations being had.

"Huh. So you two were the ones who came up with that nickname."

"Oh yeah. Though Ben and I weren't sure if you really liked it."

"Nah, I meant what I said! You guys can call me Joey anytime!

Another one was being had between a man with strange hair and a guy with… fur?

"I must say, your hair is quite peculiar. Most humans I have met do not come close."

"Eh heh… To be honest, it's always been a mystery to me too."

Pacifica, who was having a conversation with a girl in a pink dress and a short boy, suddenly noticed the two young teens walking over. "Sam?"

"Hey," Sam said coolly.

The blonde girl walked over, smiling. "It is you! How has your night been?"

"Well, after you, nothing but prim and pricks. Was getting kind of bored of that, so I thought maybe seeing someone with human decency would be a nice change of pace."

"Heh. I'll bet." Pacifica suddenly took notice of the lanky boy standing next to the goth.

Sam noticed her glance and gestured to the boy. "Meet the boy who found himself becoming the boyfriend to this lady of dread."

Danny suddenly became nervous, being put on the spot. "Uh… hey. My name… my name's Danny."

Pacifica scrutinized him. "Hmm… seems like a dork." Danny raised an eyebrow, and Sam was about to balk. "That's good. I hear dorks make the best boyfriends." Both Danny and Sam glance at each other, speechless. "Come on, let me introduce you to everyone."

 _"I can see why you actually like her,"_ Danny whispered to Sam.

Introductions were enlightening. It was surprising to see the type of prolific friends that Pacifica had made.

Danny was stunned to find the Ben Tennyson there. Seeing as how he was a fan of the everyhero, the ghost boy soon became starstruck. He was snapped out of it when he realized Billy Billions was also present. Danny quickly whispered to Sam to be wary of him.

Ben's girlfriend was a delight. She seemed like the most normal one here. At first, anyway. Sam could have sworn she saw something flashing in her eyes as they greeted. Like literally, as if someone turned on some green lights in her pupils. It was weird. Maybe it was just her imagination…

Rook had the pleasure of being the first alien Sam had ever met. He was very polite, talking of how he had never been to such a high-profile party before. Sam was quick to tell him that he wasn't missing much.

It was Sam's turn to be starstruck when she saw the duelists (though not to the extent of Ben and Julie, as she came to notice). Yugi was a legend, being able to quickly master any game that he got his hands on, never mind Duel Monsters. There were rumors that, even if he didn't know how a game was played, he could defeat a pro of that game in just the first few turns. That being said, she was a fan of Duel Monsters- to the point that she brought her collection with her as one of her entertainment options.

She was just as excited to meet Jonouchi. He did seem to have Tucker levels of ego, but considering how much of an underdog he was, she felt it was somewhat warranted. She always rooted for the underdog.

Honda was a pretty cool guy. …Sam wondered if any other people had such little to say about him. At least he seemed happy to be with friends.

Anzu was a no-nonsense type, much like herself. She automatically gained respect from Sam when she tamed a brawling Jonouchi and Honda with a glare. Though Sam knew for sure there was something going on between her and Yugi.

Seeing so many good people around, Sam started to feel as good as Pacifica. None of these people were vile manipulators or popularity obsessed fiends. Even though she and Danny just needed cover, Sam realized this week could turn out greater than she thought.

Pacifica seemed to be looking for someone, however. "They were here just a moment ago… oh! Mokuba!" The girl walked to a young man, around Sam and Danny's age. "Have you seen your brother?"

"Oh, he's just harassing the staff again. He's been trying to see Whimsley all night- oh, here he comes."

"Kaiba!"

Sam stopped in place. She knew that name. Among the list of the many companies she would picket and protest against, his company was a high one on the list. It was the only reason she never entered tournaments since his tech was in practically all of them.

The tall man exited from the crowd, clad in an outfit that would probably give Pauline a heart attack. Sam wasn't even into fashion, and even she wondered what the guy was thinking. And here was Pacifica, walking up to the guy like he wasn't one of the biggest douchebags on earth.

"Any luck?" Mokuba asked him.

"This staff is as incompetent as he is."

"Well, at least with a group like this, things won't get boring." Pacifica joked. Kaiba simply 'hmphed' in response. Pacifica suddenly remembered their latest arrival. "Oh, Sam, Danny! This is Mokuba and his brother-"

"Seto Kaiba. Owner of KaibaCorp. The company responsible for giving high-grade weapons to dictatorship governments and making the lives of people in several countries a living hell."

The entire group went silent. Had it not been for the crowd around them ignoring their existence, you could likely hear a pin drop. Kaiba's only response was to slightly turn his head to the girl. Pacifica, on the other hand, had gone from happy to frozen in fear.

"Whoa, guys…" Ben stepped forward, almost in between them. "Something… wrong?"

Mokuba stepped in front of his brother, looking very obviously offended by the words. "KaibaCorp has long ceased weapon productions and has given the UN schematics to all known weapons traded before then. We have held formal apologies to the countries affected by KaibaCorp's past actions."

"Oh yeah? Just wipe your hands clean of all the mess you made. Broke everything and the only response you could give was "I'm sorry I got everyone killed"."

Danny suddenly popped in. "HO-kay, let's just… put an ax on this conversation. Can I talk to you for a second?" Danny pulled her away from the group. "I need you to take it easy for a while, Sam. We're still trying to keep a low profile, never mind your parents' request."

"His company was responsible for thousands of deaths. I am not just going to let that slide."

"And I'm not saying you should!" Danny slumped his shoulders. "Look, on top of everything else, I think you made your new friend upset."

Sam's eyes widened and darted back to the group. Pacifica had gone from being relaxed to incredibly distressed. Sam cringed. It seemed the girl didn't know of her 'friend's' spotty record. Sam didn't mean to upset her by revealing that. Perhaps she had been a bit hasty in confronting the mogul.

* * *

Unfortunately for her, Kaiba hadn't taken much from the encounter with the random girl. He'd had his fair share of activists try to throw his father's militaristic actions back at him. All of their complainings fell dead at his door.

He was slightly surprised that Pacifica seemed so distraught by the encounter. The others were trying to console her.

"I… didn't mean to upset her like that."

Jonouchi placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't sweat it, Paz. You didn't know."

"And you really couldn't have. KaibaCorp doesn't necessarily advertise that part of its history." Yugi confirmed.

Mokuba, despite defending KaibaCorp, nodded in confirmation. "Right. It isn't your fault. This isn't the first time we've had someone spit that in our faces. It won't be the last."

"If anything, she took her meeting with Kaiba for granted." Billy huffed. Pretty much anybody would give their firstborn to meet Kaiba.

"Yeah. First impressions aren't everything!" Anzu added on. _"It's just the hundreds of impressions afterward that leave a mark."_ She quietly muttered aside to Jonouchi, who nodded. "Sam probably just needs some time to… get to know Kaiba." She strained the last part.

Pacifica smiled at Anzu, before smiling at Billy as well. Billy suddenly realized that his comment had been taken a different way, and positively at that. "Uh… yeah! Totally what I was getting at. They just need some time to hang out!" Ben and his group rolled their eyes.

Kaiba scoffed, catching everyone's attention. "Don't assume you hold responsibility for my actions or her ignorance. If she wants to spout nonsense to me, that's her problem."

"Dude, could you at least show some tact?" Ben chastised.

Kaiba ignored him. "And if you insist on believing you are responsible, then stop moping about this one interaction. Dwelling on one mistake so heavily is a fast way to lose control of the situation." With that, Kaiba walked away.

Ben started toward the same direction, only stopping when Julie tugged on his hand. "Ben…"

"I'm not going to change into an alien." He defended. "I just want to have a… stern talking with him, as my dad would put it." Julie seemed satisfied with this answer and let go of his hand.

Jonouchi scratched the back of his head as he watched Kaiba walk away. "Well, first impressions aren't everything… but they sure do mean something, I guess."

Yugi wasn't so sure. A few years ago, Kaiba would have simply ignored the girl's plight, or simply waved off the whole thing. But as harsh as his words were, the way he worded them felt as if he was relaying lessons to Pacifica.

Surely enough, he noticed the girl pondering on Kaiba's words.

It didn't take too long after Kaiba left for Sam to come back, taking a minute or two to calm down. Immediately, she went up to Pacifica. The others noticed her moving to interact with Pacifica and decided to give the two a little space.

"Hey." She opened.

"I'm… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to- I wasn't…"

"It's fine. You seemed eager to introduce me, so I can tell you didn't do it on purpose. It's just who I am. I mean, Seto Kaiba's not even in the Top 10 list of people I want to yell at." She shuffled her foot in pause. "So… how did you come across Kaiba of all people?"

"He helped me out earlier tonight. Chased off some would-be Casanova."

"Ugh. I hate that." Well, she supposed that added some karma points to his record. A very small amount, but still. "Look, despite that, I just want you to be wary of that guy. Even after their supposed "overhaul", there's a lot of suspicious hush-hush I've researched on his company. Be careful of him."

Pacifica bit her lip. She didn't understand. The gut feeling Mabel told her about was with Sam… but she also had that same gut feeling with Kaiba. She didn't which instinct to follow, or who to believe. Ugh… should've asked Mabel how to handle these situations.

* * *

"Hey!"

Kaiba scowled. He was just being bothered by all the morons today…

"You know, I heard you had a rep of being an asshole, but I never quite knew how bad it was until I saw that." Ben pointed accusingly. "There are better ways of making your point come across. One of them is by being a little nicer."

"I said nothing but the truth. And I care little for being nice about it."

As expected, the teen was displeased with this answer and prattled on more. Kaiba knew it was pointless babble and his attention drifted elsewhere. He didn't think he'd find anything interesting, but anything was better than listening to this kid drone on. At least, not until something caught his eye.

"… and I know you keep up some reputation of some kind, but trust me, public notoriety isn't worth it-"

"As much I'd like to keep hearing you talk, I've got better things to do. Besides, your friend over there wants your attention." Kaiba walked away, caring little if the message was received or not.

"Wha-Hey! Come back! Man, my parents make this look a lot easier… wait, friend?" Ben confusedly looked around. He searched the crowd for a familiar face, but it didn't seem like there was anyone he knew. Just some rich folk, some butlers, Bruce Wayne, some rich kid weeping about some blonde girl with other girls fawning over him…

Wait, Bruce Wayne?

Ben winced, rotating his head back to Wayne. The man motioned to a room, and Ben reluctantly nodded. If Bruce was here, things were about to get complicated. His suddenly nervous stomach boded poorly too. "Uh, hey, butler guy…"

* * *

Back with the larger group, Pacifica racked her brain endlessly. Sam was a nice girl, and she seemed like she just wanted to help Pacifica. But even though Kaiba seemed harsh, there had to be some reason he went out of his way to help her out. She had to figure this out.

The situation didn't get much better once Kaiba got back. Sam shot another glare while Kaiba made it a point to ignore her, only responding to Julie when she asked Ben's whereabouts.

"Pacifica, dear?"

Pacifica's mood instantly went foul. "What do you want, dad."

The words were filled with an intense vitriol that caught everyone's attention. Preston had to stop himself from scoffing- aside from one or two individuals, the company Pacifica now kept was an ugly sight to behold. "Th…There you are, young lady."

"What do you want." Pacifica's new friends were becoming off-put by her sudden change in attitude.

"Fine. I'll cut the pleasantries. You're… frehhh… fraughh… you're…you're free to do what you want."

"…Huh?"

"You're free to do what you want, here at the party and afterward on the island."

Pacifica narrowed her eyes. "Why the sudden change in behavior?"

"Because I realize having you around my business associates could be disastrous. Just be happy I'm letting you off the leash."

"Whoa, whoa. The heck kinda words are those to say to your kid?" Jonouchi barked, getting riled up. Everyone else had also become taken aback by the words.

Preston cleared his throat. "So… there. Just keep yourself in check." He emphasized. "You have money for the island on your credit card, but it is budgeted."

Preston left it at that and walked away, uncaring of the glares from most of the group. Pacifica herself was a little shocked at the development. When her father wanted something, he clung to it stubbornly like a child. Yet here he was, 'allowing' her to roam free (as if she wasn't going to do that anyway). What could've gotten into him?

Wait… did Vlad really talk some sense into her father? Well, maybe not sense, but he clearly talked him into something. Her smile came back very quickly at this thought. Perhaps things were going to start looking up for the rest of the week.

"Hey Yugi, you alright there?" Pacifica turned her head, seeing Honda approach Anzu and Yugi. Yugi himself was clutching his forehead, swaying ever so slightly.

"It's fine. He's just… getting a headache from some strong-smelling drinks and food. He just needs some fresh air." Anzu assured as she supported him. For whatever reason, this had even caught Kaiba's attention, as he eyed the two suspiciously. "I'm going to to take him to get some fresh air, we'll be right back."

Pacifica was growing concerned too. She stepped closer to see if she could offer anything.

She froze.

Perhaps the others didn't see it, but through the slips of Yugi's fingers, Pacifica saw a glimpse of a terrifying image. A wide-open eye, that could stare into one's mind.

Pacifica's memories flashed by, reminding her of a creature she would never forget. Of events that would haunt her forever.

She shook herself out of her trance and looked again, wanting to make sure she saw what she saw. But the eye was gone, with no proof of it ever being there. Pacifica sighed and began breathing deeper, having only now realized it had become shallow. Luckily, everyone was so focused on Yugi that they didn't notice her episode. With any luck, they wouldn't need to know about it at all.

She hoped more than anything else that she was just seeing things.

* * *

"Gotta say, Bruce. I was not expecting you to be at this shindig." Ben opened a bottle and poured himself a drink. "Mostly since things tend to escalate when you're around."

"Shouldn't happen this time around. My goal is merely espionage, nothing more." He looked at the bottle Ben was holding. "Ginger Ale?"

"Uh… ate too many of those pigs-in-blankets. Now my stomach is feeling a little uneasy. This stuff tends to calm it down. Plus, it tastes pretty alright." He raised the bottle to Bruce. "Want some?"

"I am feeling parched. Haven't actually had a drink tonight. Can't let any of my senses be dulled." Ben threw the bottle to him, all the while giving an amused expression.

"Of course you don't. Let nothing hinder the Dark Knight." He chuckled. "So, did you need my help or something? Hate to say it, but I'm probably no help right now. Security's got a lock on my Omnitrix. They're gonna know when I transform. In fact, I got chewed out by security just a little bit ago for transforming without permission."

"Yes, I heard about the tiger-man that frightened a young teen." Ben scratched his head, a little embarrassed. "But no. I've got this mission well under control. Though I do need you for another assignment."

Ben took another sip of his drink. "Hmm? And what's that?"

"You know the young man out there, Danny Fenton?" Ben nodded, and Bruce continued. "And do you know about Amityville's resident hero, The Phantom?"

"Sure do. He does good work from what I hear. And he's pretty snarky. I'd think me and him would get alo-" Ben stopped, putting together the pieces Bruce had given him. "No way. That kid out there…?"

"Indeed." Ben kept a bewildered look on his face. "From what I can tell, he arrived at this party with his girlfriend as a cover, while he attempted to gain evidence against Vlad Masters."

"Vlad who now?"

"Masters. He's one of the four people that I'm investigating here. He's become business partners with Monty Fisk and Princess Morbucks." Bruce used his watch to project a small hologram. "He's the only one of the group who still has a secret identity. Much like Danny, he's become half-human and half-ghost but uses his powers to obtain money and status. Goes by the name Plasmius."

"Sounds like perfect archenemy material." Ben swiveled his drink around. "So, wait… he came here all on his own to spy on three professional villains?"

"Not necessarily. I bumped into him earlier and subtly relayed the reality of the situation to him. By the nervous looks he was giving, he seemed to be under the impression that Vlad's partners were paid henchmen at best."

Ben cringed. "Yikes. Rookie mistake… well, if you managed to ward him away from this case, he should be fine."

"Unfortunately, I couldn't relay to him that someone was taking care of it. It was a bit too strange to try and say inconspicuously. So, he's probably worrying about how he'll handle the situation from here on out."

"I see where this is going. You want me to let him know that someone upstairs is keeping an eye on Vlad and his little friends, and then just be someone he can trust until this week is over."

Bruce finished his drink. "I'd say you've accurately described the assignment. Though I'd ask that you keep his secret identity under wraps, even around Rook and Julie. You want him to trust you, so he'll feel comfortable. He can't do that if he thinks his secret is spreading like wildfire."

"Right. It's no issue. He's in a somewhat scary situation and needs a fellow superhero he can talk to."

Bruce's face became a bit sterner. "Besides, I was hoping the time with Danny would convince you that-"

"No. We've been over this, Bruce. I'm not leading the team you're building. I'm not even joining it." Ben's smile was long gone now.

"You have far more experience than any of the candidates we've scouted, Ben. You've faced numerous different threats, covering all the situations of the other heroes combined. Not to mention you've had plenty of leadership experience, what with all the numerous groups you've led against those threats."

"Just get Kim to lead those new superheroes and stop asking me about it. She has around the same level of experience as me." Ben was growing irritated.

"But she lacks leadership experience. That's something she admitted herself." Bruce sighed. "Ben, listen…many heroes face that moment where, despite how hard they try, they weren't able to stop someone from getting hurt… or worse. What happened to Julie-"

CRASH!

Bruce was cut off as Ben had thrown his glass against the wall. The look on his face told him he was furious that Bruce had brought it up.

"WHAT HAPPENED TO JULIE DIDN'T HAPPEN WHILE I WAS TRYING MY BEST, BRUCE! It happened while I was acting like a negligent, self-absorbed prick! It happened because I _was_ a negligent, self-absorbed prick!" The remaining contents of Ben's drink slowly dripped down the wall. They stood there in silence for a few seconds, Bruce having not flinched at the outburst, while Ben was breathing a little heavier. Eventually, Ben's face softened into a look of sorrow. "What happened to Julie is enough to tell me that I have no business being the leader of anything, much less being any kind of influence on rookie heroes. I'm helping Danny because he needs it, but I'm not doing any more than that."

Bruce closed his eyes. "Alright. I won't bring it up anymore." Ben nodded, before checking on the mess he had made. "However…" Bruce started again, and Ben turned to face him. "…I do need to ask one more favor. The girl out there, Pacifica Northwest?"

Ben raised an eyebrow. "Is she a superhero too?"

"No. But her situation might be bleaker than Danny's. Her father, Preston Northwest, is the fourth suspect I'm investigating." Ben's eyes widened. "He's simply being used by Vlad and the others, likely as a fall man. After all, in most ways, he's nowhere near as bad as them. But in some ways, he could potentially be just as awful."

"…How so?" Ben asked, not liking the direction of this conversation.

"Nothing certain yet. But when I talked to her parents, their behavior raised many warning signs as to how they treat their daughter." Bruce set his cup down. "I want you to watch over her. See if you can find out any information as to how her parents may be treating her. Be someone she knows she can confide in."

"…Alright. I'll see what I can do." Ben turned to look at the smashed glass.

"Don't worry about that. I'll take care of it." Bruce said. Ben, still feeling uncomfortable after the outburst, decided to leave it at that and exited the room. After he left, Bruce sighed. "It's times like this I wish I had Dinah's knowledge of therapy."

* * *

"Breathe, Yugi. I'm here." Anzu comforted the now lurched over Yugi, who seemed to be trembling in pain- so much that he had crumpled to his knees. He was also clutching his head and stomach. "Was it Pacifica's father? Is that what's setting "it" off?"

"N-n-no… I could f-f-feel his vile nature, but he… he was only part of what I could sense. Not enough to trigger "it"." He slowly turned his head to Anzu. "I'm- urrggh!- sorry, Anzu. I thought I could handle it. That… that it was only causing me uneasiness back… in the car."

She remembered Yugi going silent during her story. "You… you thought it was just because you were thinking about that creep? And what he tried to do?"

Yugi nodded. "But… the closer we got to the Mansion, the more it began to grow… the evil presences I feel here are large and overwhelming… sooner or later, they might set me off."

He slowly stood up, Anzu helping him back to his feet. "We need to leave. We don't have to tell Jonouchi and Honda about… "it". But they'll know that it's for an important reason. They trust us."

The king of games shook his head. "No… I need… I need to learn to control this. I can't just keep running away from all the things that trigger it."

"I know you can't, Yugi. But… you hate what happens when it emerges."

"I know. So, let's hope I can avoid the people giving off those evil energies and adjust to this "atmosphere" quick enough for it not to matter. If I can get it under control, I can at least use it to help, and not to hurt." Yugi let go of his stomach, the pain subsiding. "But if I can't, then… tell Jonouchi and Honda, so you all can stop me from doing anything I'll regret." Anzu nodded in response. All the while, Yugi removed his other hand from his forehead.

Had anyone else been there, they would have seen a bright golden eye shining from that spot, ready to peer deep into one's soul.


	8. It Hits the Fan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben meets back up with the group, and has a chat with Danny. Batman invites the League to Vlad's TedTalk. Preston finds out that when you swim with the big fish, you might want to respect the even bigger ones. Instead of learning such a lesson, he brings things crashing down onto Pacifica.

Seeing his group in the distance, Ben put a smile on his face. He just had to look after two people and make sure they were okay. Nothing else. No leadership needed, just being sort of a big brother to two younger teens. And certainly no need to think about the intense conversation he had with Bruce. That was it.

It still took him a few seconds before moving forward, but he finally steeled himself and rejoined his friends.

"Yo! What'd I miss?"

Julie and Rook smiled at his return. Julie's smile quickly went away as she slid up beside him. "Can we talk for a sec?"

As Rook made sure they had their privacy, the two discussed what happened while Ben was gone. "So… we met Pacifica's father."

"Oh," Ben said, remembering what Bruce asked of him. "Was he snobbish or cool?"

"I'm thinking he's a creep." She sadly looked at Pacifica. "There was hatred in Pacifica's voice when she greeted him. Honest to god hatred. And the way he talked was the most uncomfortable thing I've heard in my life. He was here to tell Pacifica that she was "free to do what she wanted" and seemed hesitant to do so. Then he told her she should just be glad he's "letting her off her leash".

Ben narrowed his eyes at the information. Bruce's hunch had to be right. It wasn't enough to call someone about it since it was nothing but hearsay and the man could potentially pay off people at this point. But he had a place to start from. Now they just had to get Pacifica to know they could be trusted to help her.

He noticed two others were gone. "Where's ol' explosive hair and Anzu?"

"They went out to get some air. Yugi was feeling bad. She says he'll be alright, but he looked almost ready to keel over. I sure hope she's right."

Ben took note of that, reminding himself to keep an eye on Yugi from then on.

His final quarry (God, he sounded like Kyber), Danny, was with his girlfriend. It appeared he was trying to calm her down, with no luck. She still wasn't happy about Kaiba's presence.

"Alright, so with the most probable explanation being that Pacifica's parents are the worst, we'll want to keep close to her. You two make her feel as comfortable as possible. If it's anything she needs right now, it's friends. I'll catch up with you on that, I just need to talk with someone first."

"Thanks, Benji." Julie kissed him on the cheek before heading off with Rook.

Ben took a deep breath, hoping he knew what he was doing. He'd met plenty of older heroes before, and even those of his age. But heroes younger than him? That was a whole new ball game for him. He'd always been the younger, the one inspired by long-time heroes, and now his role was reversed. The expectations placed on him at this moment felt heavy on his shoulders.

Of course, it's not like he deserved those expectations. His most recent faults could support that. He was a partner, not a leader. Not someone to look up to.

But right now, this Danny kid needed his help. He could only hope that the guy saw him as a friend instead of a teacher by the end of this.

He wasn't sure what he and Sam were talking about, the two of them were talking too quietly. Could've been anything at this point: Kaiba, Pacifica's dad, the superhero stuff… regardless, he was there to alleviate things. "Hey, y'all doing alright?"

The two spun around hurriedly. "Uh, yeah! We're holding up."

"Holding up? That's it? Wow, Kaiba really got under your skins, huh?"

Sam scoffed. "That's an understatement. Saw you try to go talk to him. How well did that work out?"

"He's about as stubborn as they come, unsurprisingly. Probably should have seen that coming." He chuckled, before dropping the smile. "Heard about Pacifica's father coming around."

"From the moment I heard his voice, he just completely infuriated me," Sam stated.

"So I've been hearing. I know Kaiba is kind of an ass, but maybe we should focus on that mess first. For Pacifica's sake."

Sam looked off to the side. "I'll still object if he does something that goes against my moral code."

"Fair enough. You cool Danny?"

"Sure."

Ben nodded. "Speaking of which, can I talk to your boyfriend in private?"

Sam looked confused. "What for?"

"Uh... guy stuff." God, he was so much worse at this than Bruce.

Sam raised an eyebrow.

"Uh… relationship advise I got from my girlfriend. Who is very smart and knows what guys should do. In relationships."

Sam scrutinized him for a second more. "…Okay. Just don't tell him anything that would make him a jerk, or I'm coming for you."

"Once again, fair enough."

She shuffled off, joining the rest of the bigger group.

Ben looked at Danny, who had gained a look of concern. He probably didn't know what to expect from this conversation.

"So…" The two stared at each other for a moment. Ben was trying to find a way to segue into the topic at hand, with little success. He was becoming more aware each second of the young man staring at him in confusion. Thus, in a panic… "Uh… so, have you ever phased into the girl's locker room? Cause that's no good."

Danny spat out his drink. A drink Ben didn't remember him having. "W-what?!"

_"Nailed it."_ Ben sarcastically thought to himself. "Ok, not how I wanted to start that. But I suppose it's a good time as any to say: nice to meet you, Phantom."

"That- I- No-" Danny restarted, composing himself. "That's… completely untrue. No idea where you got tha-"

"Dude." He pointed to himself. "Superhero. It's okay, your secret is safe with me."

Danny nervously fidgeted for a few seconds, unsure how to cope with this sudden breach of his secret. Ben winced at this. _"Great. Screw this up too, why don't you?"_ He sighed and placed a hand on Danny's shoulder. "Look, I should've eased you into this, but you don't have to worry. I know how important keeping this a secret is. I'm the only one who knows. Ok?"

Danny stared at him a moment. He gave a few deep breaths before his fidgeting finally ceased. "Ok. Ok. Yeah, I'm the Phantom." He gave a weak chuckle. "Guess it was kind of obvious, huh?"

"If I'm to be honest, no. I only found out because of a mutual friend we have at this party." Danny looked at him in confusion. "It's one of the big-time heroes. Even bigger than me. And he told me to help you specifically."

"Really? They want to help me? That's… that's great! Because I know that-"

"Vlad and his posse are meeting up to discuss some big plan?"

Danny was startled by the interruption. "Uh… yeah. So, what are we gonna initiate some sort of sneak attack, or…?"

"We, are going to let our mutual friend handle it… and relax."

Danny frowned. "Huh?"

"Listen, these people that your arch-enemy's team up with? They're some heavy hitters, believe it or not. And right now, we're in a bit of a delicate situation in a delicate place. It's for the best for us to sit this one out, ok?"

"But… who's gonna stop him? Whatever he's up to…"

"Is completely covered by our friends upstairs." Ben pointed upward.

"…The Justice League? They're the ones looking into this?"

"Eh… sort of. Bottom line is that you don't have to fight Vlad now. They'll take care of it."

Danny sighed, his happiness drained out of him.

"Hey, it's ok, dude. That just means you get to relax on this vacation."

"But I dove into this wanting to stop Vlad. I came to this island to bust him and got backed into a corner instead. I just… I just wanted to make up for screwing up so badly." He clenched his fists.

Ben looked at him, knowing exactly how he felt. With how long he'd been in the game, he felt it plenty of times. "Danny… truth is, in this line of work… you're bound to make mistakes. Some just missteps, others… pretty awful screw-ups. They just happen. But the one thing you can do is learn. Learn from what went wrong and do better next time." Unfortunately, some part of his brain challenged him on that. **'You mean like you did?'** _'I learned what I needed to.'_ **'Sure, keep telling yourself that.'**

"Sorry, but that doesn't really make me feel better."

"Yeah… it doesn't. But it'll pass, and you'll grow. And it's not like you have to do it alone. You've got friends to help you through the mistakes."

Danny smiled at the mention of that. It was true, his friends and family helped him through a lot, especially after knowing his secret. He just wished there was something he could do. Something that didn't make him feel like he was wasting time while Vlad schemed away. It's not as if he could learn that much from this failure… wait. "Hey… maybe you can show me the ropes!"

"Uh… what?"

"Yeah! I mean, we really couldn't do any power testing here cause of the 'no superheroes' thing, but you could tell me all about your adventures, and give me tips! And maybe after all this is over we can do some physical training!"

"I mean, I don't think I'm cut out for teaching younger heroes."

Danny nudged him. "Ah, come on. You taught Rook and Julie the ropes."

"Yes, but we're partners, and-"

"Plus, you've fought everybody from small-time crooks to cosmic horrors. You might as well be on Superman's level."

"I wouldn't say that at all-"

"With all that experience, I think you could help me become a better hero. I've… I've always kind of had to do this on my own. Sure my family and friends support me, but… figuring out how this hero deal works has always been a solo gig." Danny looked at his elder, hoping to hear a yes out of him. Instead, he was caught off guard.

Ben had been looking at him with a troubled face, before turning away. He kept staring off into the distance, making Danny wonder if he had offended him somehow. "I think… I think it's best if you just keep going on your own. I'm nowhere near qualified to teach you."

"Oh."

Ben could hear the crushing disappointment in Danny's response. Great. He was letting someone down yet again. But he honestly couldn't risk the kid following in his footsteps. Good hero? Sure. Good person? …No. But the kid was beating himself up even though he had tried his hardest. Ben had to cheer him up somehow.

Maybe… he could compromise. "You know… I may not be the best teacher, but I am the best teaching experience."

This odd phrasing only confused the ghost kid, and he tilted his head in response.

"Look, I've made my fair share of mistakes. Ones that you could very well avoid. I can tell you about all the times I messed up royally, and you can learn from those. So, when you run into situations like them, you'll be prepared for it. I can do that much for you."

Danny lightened up a bit. "Huh. Okay. Yeah, alright." It was a start.

"We'll start my blooper reel tomorrow though. Just enjoy tonight." He smirked. "Besides, I actually have to go through with telling you some relationship tips."

Danny blushed. "You don't really have to."

"I do if we want a decent cover story for your girlfriend if she asks. So, the thing about being in a relationship…"

"No, I mean, my girlfriend knows my secret. I can tell her what we actually talked about instead of having this awkward conversation."

"…Oh."

* * *

_"Is everyone here?"_

_"Mr. Terrific, present."_

_**"Doctor Fate, present."** _

_"Nightwing, present."_

_"Kim Possible, present."_

_"Blossom, present."_

_"Buttercup, present."_

_"Bubbles, present."_

"Good. Everyone vital to this conference is present and accounted for." Batman confirmed.

_"Looks like our stealth tech is working for you just fine."_ Mr. Terrific happily noted.

"The combination of our technological applications as well as Fate's magical attributes has done well. If I'm to be honest, it's exceeding expectations."

Nightwing continued. _"Thus putting our little ice cream social at very little risk of being eavesdropped by Whimsley's security."_

_"So, what's the sitch so far, Batman?"_

"Preston Northwest was the first to arrive, followed by Vlad Masters, and Princess Morbucks. Monty Fisk has yet to arrive, and although Masters and Morbucks have stuck close to one another, Northwest has recently strayed from them for a short time-" A beep came from his wrist. "Fisk has just arrived inside the mansion. Which means that their meeting is about to commence. Nightwing, any updates on Bane?"

_"Other than the corrupt guards giving him a fine meal, he's done nothing. But his guards have brought in a contraband phone. I think he's expecting a call. He seems way more carefree than he should be about this."_

"Keep watching him. I have a feeling I know who his contact is. Is everyone in position?" Batman asked.

_"We're all ready to be deployed from the Watchtower,"_ Blossom replied.

_"I have them and other leaguers on standby, ready to deploy to any location needed,"_ Terrific stated.

"Good. When their meeting starts this comm will be connected to the other device Mr. Terrific and I also developed. Be quick to respond to any information given off."

_"Confirmed."_ They all replied, and most signed off.

_"Hey Bats,"_ Mr. Terrific signaled. _"Doctor Fate and I want to talk with you privately."_

"Make it quick. Fisk is on his way, and I have no doubt Northwest will return soon."

_"It's about the Northwests. See, while we were doing some follow up investigating up on our suspects, we found some interesting info surrounding Preston and his family."_

"I'm aware. Their family has a criminal history stretching back to the Mid 1800s."

_"It's more than that. See, I decided to get more information on the Northwest family by investigating their former workers."_

Batman raised an eyebrow. He had considered going down that road himself, but the party had come up before he had the chance.

_"I questioned several of the various maids, butlers and chefs that didn't go back to work for Preston after they had been let go. Judging by how much coaxing I had to do to get them to talk, they must've been threatened to be blacklisted by Preston. They wouldn't say a thing until I promised them that they could still get work afterward."_

"What did they have to say?"

_"Well, nothing that we hadn't already known about… at first. But then, they told me something interesting."_ Batman began to see news reports pop up, all from the local Gravity Falls newspapers. Every single one talked of some strange creature or happening.

"Why are you showing me this, Terrific?"

_"Stay with me on this. See, the employees all had one story that stuck out to me- apparently, one summer, the Northwest Mansion had been haunted. The family's big party was being threatened by some kind of ghost."_

"A ghost?"

_"Now, I didn't think too much on it… till I found a gnome trying to take one of my T-spheres. You can imagine I was very interested after that. Turns out, this town is home to the crazy occurrences. Cryptids, supernatural beings, anomalies, you name it._

Batman took a look through the newspapers again and found similar reports.

_"So, I went back and questioned them further on that. Apparently, some spirit had cursed the Northwests for wronging him and his fellow lumber folk… a curse that would activate one hundred years later. He would burn the mansion and everyone inside unless they opened the gates to the common citizens. Preston and his wife didn't do a damn thing, but their daughter did… in spite of her parents, she opened the gates, allowing the spirit to rest."_

"So Preston and Priscilla nearly allowed an entire mansion of people to die. It's awful, but I don't think it'll hold in court based on the account of a ghost. Or the fact that it involves a ghost in the first place."

_"It's worse than that, Bats."_ Mr. Terrific said somberly. _"See, what interested me the most about this story wasn't the ghost. I've seen weirder than that just working with the League. Rather, it was the way Preston treated his daughter. The employees made me swear that they would be under my protection if they told me this one. See, Pacifica's father tried to stop her… by ringing a bell. A bell that made her freeze. A bell that she had to power through to open the gate."_ Terrific paused. _"Now what kind of training method do we both know about that could cause that kind of response out of a girl?"_

Batman scowled, clenching his teeth. "Pavlovian Conditioning."

_"Right. It was apparently a common method they used to try and control their daughter. They started when she was about three years old."_ Batman could hear his voice falter a moment. _"Batman… we can't allow that man to keep holding custody of the girl. If he didn't think a single thing was wrong before, it's likely that's still how he's operating as a parent."_

"I'll do what I can. You just focus on collecting more incriminating evidence on him and the other members of Vlad's group." He remembered the uneasy atmosphere between Preston and his daughter earlier. Suddenly, it all made too much sense.

**_"I have more to say as well, I'm afraid."_** Doctor Fate interjected, announcing his presence. **_"Though I had only been taking part in the creation of the stealth tech, something pulled me to look into the town after hearing of Terrific's reports. I even visited the location. What I found was staggering. Looking into my vast magical knowledge, I discovered why there was so many anomalies within the town- this 'Gravity Falls' is what is known as a Gateway of Anomaly. A spot in our universe where the dimensional boundary is weakest, allowing the cosmic and magical energy of parallel universes to seep through. Not only that, but it attracts all things supernatural- creatures, events… even people."_**

Though it was an interesting thing to learn, Batman wanted to know what Fate was getting at. "What does this have to do with the Northwests?"

**_"I'm unsure as of this time, but it I think it would be best if we kept the girl under our protection after we expose her father. I've had something of a bad omen regarding the… "energy" that surrounds the town."_ **

Batman had been in the same room as Princess and Vlad, watching them from an inconspicuous position. He saw Preston enter, shuffling to the side of the room. "Northwest just returned. We'll continue investigating on both of those fronts, but for now, we have a meeting to witness. Remain on standby."

_"Right. Mr. Terrific, out."_

Doctor Fate, however, remained on. **_"Batman… I found something else in that town. Something that could be a danger to the entire universe if left unattended. However, I believe it can be saved until after this mission is ended. Doctor Fate, out."_**

Hmph. That was certainly foreboding. Yet another piece of information to add to the conspiracy, perhaps? But Doctor Fate was right- it would have to wait.

It was almost time…

* * *

Took you long enough to get here."

Monty growled. Despite her claims of having grown, he still believed she was nothing more than a brat. "Oh, do be quiet. I was taking precautions concerning my part of the plan. They were certainly needed if what Vlad says is true."

"How on earth it takes you and all the rest of Possible's villains so long to coordinate anything is baffling."

"Well, I'm sorry we can't all be Luthor's little darlings. If you don't mind, I'd rather make sure things are perfectly planned rather than rushed out."

Vlad interrupted both of them, a nervous Preston in tow. "Save your bickering for after the meeting. We must attend to the problem at hand. Immediately."

"Oh, for God's sake- I thought we'd be leaving the buffoon out of this." Monty groaned.

"I must ensure that all parties are coordinated and doing their job. Now, come along." The quartet moved towards a room, being 'guarded by a very large man. "Why, thank you for reserving our room, Dimitri. Could you make sure no one disturbs us?" The man grunted in response.

* * *

Unbeknownst to them, Bruce Wayne had entered the room adjacent to them and locked the door. As soon as he made sure no one was in there, he pressed a small button on his collar.

Almost immediately, his suit dissolved, before covering his entire body. Soon, the man looked more like a shadow of the Dark Knight, albeit without his bat symbols.

"Nanotech suit deployed. Comms online. Taps deployed." As he stated, about a few dozen miniature bat-shaped objects flew out from his suit, some onto the wall that his room and theirs, some out the window, and some went under the door he just entered. All were outfitted with the same tech that had hidden his nanotech Batsuit and soon nestled into various spots surrounding the room. His suit's eyesocket projected and x-ray, allowing him to see all suspects. "Room is wired. Be ready."

_"So…"_ He heard Vlad begin on the other side.

* * *

"…why don't we just cut the pleasantries and get to the point. Things have been going smoothly for a while. Morbucks had just finished fusing the Chemical X she acquired into the compound. Monkeyfist's magical artifacts ensured that both the Chemical X and the Ecto-energy fused properly and would invoke the exact effects we wanted from it. And all three of our enemies' rogues galleries agreed to cause trouble and draw attention away from our exploits. Everyone was doing their part… except for Bane."

"Bane? How on earth did he screw up? He's a very consistent partner." Morbucks questioned.

"Indeed he should be. Per our agreement, he would assist in helping us smuggle our compound to each other, as well as combining it with his Venom, and he would be paid handsomely when our plan came to fruition. However, all that was for naught, as he has been recently been caught by the Batman after SELLING VENOM ON THE STREETS!"

Monkeyfist slammed his fist onto the table. "What?! But we specifically told him to stay under the radar! This could set back our plan drastically!"

"I am aware. But now we must contact him to ensure he has not compromised the plan in any other ways."

Morbucks pondered. "He wouldn't be so careless. Something's not right about this."

In their anger, they failed to notice Preston becoming increasingly nervous. He began to sweat as he used a special phone to call Bane.

* * *

_"So that's why Mojo and the others have been such a pain in the ass recently."_ Batman heard Buttercup say.

_"Now that I think about it, Drakken and Shego were confused about why my other rogues had been going ballistic with plans. They were the only ones confirmed not to have been brought in on this."_

_"But why are they working together in the first place? Why would they coordinate with each other on such a grand scale?"_ Bubbles wondered.

_"Batman, the guard is bringing Bane the contraband phone."_ Nightwing updated.

Mr. Terrific quieted them. _"Everyone, clear the line. I think we're about to find out."_

* * *

_"Why hello there, Plasmius. I haven't heard from you in so long."_ Bane smugly said.

"Cut the chitchat, Bane, and don't use that name. What on earth were you thinking?" Vlad asked in anger.

_"Nothing more than a little moonlighting on the side, Vlad."_

"'Moonlighting?' You were supposed to keep a low profile! Instead, you sell Venom out in the open for almost three weeks, and get yourself captured by the Batman! You didn't hold up your end of the deal!"

_"Why don't you talk to your associates about deals before you scold me?"_

Vlad was taken aback. "What is that supposed to mean?"

_"When we first agreed to help one another, I asked you for an upfront payment, yes? A reasonable amount that would accommodate the demands you required. Well, I'm afraid I was dangerously close to going over budget. Why you may ask? Because I had yet to receive one-fourth of that payment!"_ It was at this point that Morbucks noticed Preston was shaking.

"What!? Hold on, Bane, I ensured that all of us sent our share of payment to you."

"Really, Vlad? Then why don't ask Preston over here why he's suddenly so sweaty?" Morbucks suggested.

Vlad looked over to find the now terrified Northwest. His face grew into a look of ferocity. "You." He bellowed. "What did you do?!"

_"Allow me to answer that."_ Bane said before Preston could get a word out. _"After going months on end with him constantly telling me that I would get his share eventually, I called him personally. I told him "Pay me, or there will be trouble". Do you know what he did? He dared to send me a fake payment. And when I warned him of the consequences? He said it was more than I deserved, and that I shouldn't expect any money after the job either. This… insulted me greatly."_

Vlad seethed, moving closer to Preston. "I see. Thank you for your cooperation, Bane. Perhaps next time we can make a deal on far better terms." He calmly hung up…

…before swinging around and grabbing Preston by his collar. "YOU IMBECILE! We've been planning for months to infect our competition with the compound to dissuade their investors and draw interest in our work! We spend painstaking amounts of time making sure that we would increase our profits, as well as strike our enemies at their hearts! AND YOU GO AND SCREW EVERYTHING UP!" Vlad threw him across the room.

Preston slowly got up, wincing at his new bruises. "But… he was just a common ruffian!"

"That 'ruffian' is one of smartest men in the world, dolt!" Monkeyfist chastised. Morbucks in the meantime had resorted to fiddling with something on her wrist.

"Well, I… er, that is… please, Mr. Masters, don't cut me out of the deal, I can pay him now!"

Vlad slowly walked towards Preston, the Northwest backing up to try and keep space between them. "Oh, I'm afraid that's not possible at this point. Your time in this partnership has come to an end." Preston noticed as Vlad's hands began to glow a deep green, and his face grew more demonic. "However, I think that being cut from this partnership is the least of your worries now."

* * *

Batman listened in as the meeting delved into chaos.

_"'Infect their competition'? What does that mean?"_ Blossom wondered.

_"What's the sitch, Wade?"_ Seems Kim had brought her informant into the communication. _"No… No, they've gone too far this time!"_

_"What is it, Kim?"_ Bubbles asked her.

_"My father- Dr. James Possible, creator of the Powerpuffs- Professor Utonium, and two ghost experts named Jack and Madeline Fenton have been working together for months ever since a science expo in Gotham. They've been experimenting with Chemical X and Ecto-energy to hopefully apply it to interplanetary travel! Not a few weeks later, Vlad and his group announced they were working on similar plans."_

_"Wait… so, you're saying…"_ Buttercup muttered, piecing it together. _"THOSE ROTTEN BASTARDS!"_

_"Buttercup, calm down! We won't let that happen!"_ Blossom yelled.

_"Let me go! We need to go protect the professor!"_

_"She's right, even if she's going nuts about it. We can't risk the scientists being targeted now. We'll need leaguers to ensure that Dr. Possible, Professor Utonium, and Jack and Madeline Fenton are unharmed, and to investigate for any mercenaries afterward. Buttercup, I'll send you too, but you need to simmer down. We can't risk drawing attention to this."_ Terrific stated.

Buttercup was silent for a moment before responding. _"Ok. Just let me protect my dad."_

_"Of course. Batman, I'm dispatching Kim, the Powerpuffs, and several Leaguers to protect the scientists."_ He heard his comm adjust slightly. _"Bats, I didn't want to say this to them, but this is bad. With Preston being so careless, the others are likely to scramble and start burning bridges. It won't be impossible to convict them, but it'll get a lot harder."_

"We'll have to cross that burnt bridge when we get to it." He was thinking about something else, however. Morbucks was right, Bane usually wasn't so careless. Unless… "I get it now. Bane must have meant it when he said he was insulted. He's playing it like he was trying to make up for the missing cost, but he must've drawn attention to himself on purpose."

_"I see what you're saying. He wasn't just insulted by Preston; he was insulted by the rest for keeping such a liability around in such a professional agreement. So, he left his computer filled to the brim with delicate data for you to find. Bats, I get the feeling they're about to get a lot more paranoid about their surroundings."_

"Agreed. I think we have all the necessary info we need, anyway. Retrieve the Nanobats and we'll plan out our next move." Mr. Terrific typed in a command on the other side. Soon the Nanobats had returned and merged back with his suit, as he changed it back into the tux. Combing his hair down, he stepped outside.

As soon as he had done so, Preston immediately burst from the room next to him, running off to who knows where. Bruce knew it likely wouldn't be a good idea to leave him alone. There was no telling what he would do in such a panic.

Before he could move to follow, two of Whimsley's security moved in front of him. "Excuse us, Mr. Wayne… we detected some weird readings in this area. After doing a deep scan, we noticed you seem to be holding some very high tech on you. Could you please explain?" One asked.

"Hmm? Oh! My apologies. I meant to tell Whimsley about it, but the man has been so busy tonight I haven't had the chance. I've been testing out a set of nanobot clothing to present at the Tech Show on Friday." 'Vlad's ghostly outburst must've gotten them stirred up. Need to sort this out quickly and find Preston.'

The two security guards smiled. "Ah, the Tech Show. I understand, Mr. Wayne. Just answer a few questions for us and we'll let you on your way."

* * *

Vlad was steaming mad. So mad, in fact, that his hands were still glowing.

"Would you put a lid on it, Plasmius? You're gonna get Whimsley's security to dogpile us at this rate!"

With the warning of the young girl, Vlad forced himself to calm down, turning back into his human form. "Perhaps I went overboard, but even still. You heard Bane. He obviously got himself caught on purpose to teach us a lesson, and it's all that oaf's fault." He groaned. "All that planning, gone to waste…"

"Great. Dr. Dementor will never let me hear the end of this…" Monkey Fist grumbled.

"Oh, for god's sake. This is why Luthor saw something in me and not any of you. Clearly, neither of you know how to salvage a plan." Princess was typing away on her holographic wrist gauntlet. I'm already covering our tracks. You can thank me later." The two men simply glared at her. "As for Northwest… oops, it looks like he just stole large sums of money from all three of us."

"But I was saving up to buy a sumo gorilla!" Fist objected.

"I thought I told you not to meddle in my bank accounts!" Vlad shouted at her.

"Would you two shut it?! You'll get it back when he's convicted. Besides, I did it to myself, too. You have to learn to make a few personal sacrifices here and there. Break a few eggs…" She closed her gauntlet. "Of course, it will take some time before the compound can be utilized now. You should consider yourselves lucky that it was one of my facilities that had it last reached. We can hide it for a time until we can safely plan to use it again. Of course… with Vlad's inability to keep control of this operation, and Fisk having the same problem-solving skills as a Chimp..."

"Why you little…"

"Please, I am at least on an Orangutan's level."

Both were interrupted as Princess brought her sparking arm up. The two took a step back. "…it's become abundantly clear that I have to take the reins. **Whether you like it or not."**

* * *

By the time Ben and Danny had come back, Yugi and Anzu had already returned to the group.

"Oh, hey!" Ben greeted the duelist. "Heard you had to step out for a moment. You think you're gonna be okay?"

"Hopefully. I'd hate to miss the fun." Yugi gave a small smile.

Ben nodded before returning to his partner and girlfriend. "Hey, you two. How goes helping Pacifica?"

"She appears comfortable. But I am concerned with the way her father spoke to her. If I did not do anything to assist, it would feel like going against everything my Plumber badge stands for. But I am unsure how to approach her." Rook pointed to the young girl as she conversed with the others.

"You're thinking too much like a Plumber, Rook. There's a saying I've heard going around recently… sometimes people don't need a hero, they need a friend." Julie put her hand on Ben's shoulder, who smiled in response, only to look down and frown. "If she knows that we're here for her, ready to listen, then she'll become comfortable enough to talk to us about it."

"Julie's right. She probably wants to get to know us more before she spills her heart out. If her dad's given her freedom for the entire week, that just means we have a better chance of helping her." Ben approached the young girl, as she was being told by Jonouchi how he won against Espa Roba.

Pacifica noticed him coming over and decided she wanted to see what the hero was like, walking to meet him. "Oh, like, hey. Ben, right? Sorry, we haven't had the chance to really talk yet."

"It's cool. I'm just glad everyone's having a good time. Looks like this batch of teens is gonna be hanging out together from now on. I take it you'll be joining us?"

"Well, yeah. Now that my dad has… backed off a bit."

"Oh yeah. I… was talking to a friend away from the group, but I heard about that. Your father seems like… well…"

"I know." She said, sighing in response.

"You seem a bit uneasy. You okay?"

"…Maybe. I can't but feel nervous about… something. It's kind of scaring me."

Ben looked as she side-eyed the nearby wall. "Well… whatever that something is, I can tell you something I'm one hundred percent confident in one thing." She looked back at him. "Everyone here will have your back when it comes around. Now, and after the week is over."

Pacifica slowly smiled at that, reassured by this statement. Ben gave her a thumbs up in response. "Now let's go and just keep getting to know everyone. I'm sure they've all got stories to tell."

Pacifica nodded and the two rejoined their little club.

* * *

Pacifica still missed the twins. She still missed Wendy, Soos, the Grunkles, Candy, Grenda, and all the rest. But even though she had been dragged away from all of them, off to be nothing more than a pretty thing for her father to show off for an entire week, she was glad she came. She'd been meeting so many people she could never forget at this point, people that she wouldn't have met if she hadn't come. And as she sat there, listening to stories of aliens and card games and ghost hunting, she couldn't help but feel on top of the world.

"Pacifica!" At the sound of her father's voice, her positive feelings faltered. Standing there, both he and her mother were expectantly waiting for her. His hand making a 'come hither' motion. "We're leaving. Now."

"Already? It's kind of early to call it a night, isn't it?"

"No, we're leaving the island. Get a move on."

"What?!" Pacifica exclaimed. "What are you talking about?! You just told me I was free to do what I wanted!"

"Yes, well, things change. Now move."

"What's the rush, Preston?" Ben asked in full suspicion. He was very panicky for some odd reason. Bruce did say Northwest had been part of the same deal he had been investigating, so maybe… "Something go wrong?"

"That's none of your business."

"I dunno. You were part of a business deal with two known criminals, former or not. I'd say you'd have quite the reason to be worried if you ran into trouble." He smugly questioned. "Princess Morbucks and Monty Fisk, right? As a hero, I'm asking out of concern, honestly."

"Wait… you're right! I remember hearing that you were part of that deal! Figures, anyone who thinks Vlad is good company is probably rotten to begin with." Danny folded his arms, glaring at Preston. Pacifica looked at him in surprise.

"None of that concerns you! My business is my business!"

"Vlad? Vlad Masters? But he… he was the one who talked to my dad about lightening up on me. He was the one who asked me to help you, Sam." Pacifica stated. How could he have been a bad person?

Both Danny and Sam gave her shocked looks. "Pacifica… you talked to Vlad?"

"Yeah, he said he was a family friend of yours."

Sam placed her hands on Pacifica's shoulders. "Pacifica, he is no friend of my family's, and definitely no friend of mine. At all. Whatever he did, whatever he said to you, was to benefit himself. For god's sake, he's had the creepiest obsession with my boyfriend's mom for the longest time."

"I know he may have seemed nice, but the guy is bad news. Think about it: what good can he do, being partnered with two people that have criminal records, and this pompous jerk?" Danny gestured to Paz's father.

Pacifica thought on both of their statements. Her hands balled into fists, trembling in anger. "I don't believe it. You really have gone straight back to the old Northwest way, haven't you? Here I thought that all those summers ago you would have been humbled, at least in the slightest, but you're just the same horrible man you've always been!"

"You will mind your tone, young lady! Your attitude has been consistently abominable this week, and I am at my limit with it! You will obey us, or-"

"NO!" Beginning to march aggressively towards her father. "I'm not going to, and no one ever will again! And that just burns you up inside, doesn't it?! You want to control everything and everyone in your life because you think you're better than everyone! That you're some king who everyone has to bend their will to! But when the world doesn't give you that control, you reveal who you really are- a small, insignificant and vile rat, who can somehow live with being the descendant of crooks and liars, as long as it means that he doesn't have to acknowledge that he descended from a CRAP SHOVELER! What do you have now to even be proud of?! A mudflap factory? A yes-man of a wife who most likely doesn't have an ounce of love in her body for you?! A petty grudge on a family that lives in a tourist trap?! And look where it's gotten you, scared out of your mind from some deal gone bad, scrambling to regain a suppressive hold on anything, even your own daughter! Well, you're not getting it. You're nothing. Less than nothing. A cold, empty man who clearly hasn't truly cared for anything but money and power for a long time. And I won't let you control me anymore."

Preston was seething. The others were silent, completely unexpecting the outburst. Pacifica simply turned to remain with her friends, content in telling off her father.

But Preston was far too angry to leave it there. He was so furious, that he stopped considering the ramifications of what he was about to do in front of witnesses. "You think I can't control you?" He growled, pulling out a box and opening it. "You are my possession. And you will obey me."

Maybe it was because of her happiness in chewing out Preston, or that she had become so relaxed around her new friends… but Pacifica's guard had been let down. And when she heard the long, high pitched ringing that had haunted her life, she froze.

All the memories began flooding back.

* * *

_Hee hee… hahaha! Pretty birdies!" Pacifica giggled, chasing after the peacocks in the garden. One peacock, terrified by the three-year-old child, left the garden in a panic. Pacifica simply giggled some more as she waddled after it._

_Where'd the birdie go? She lost it… she somehow had ended up in the shiny room her parents really liked. "PACIFICA ELISE NORTHWEST!" She cringed at her father's voice. What did she do? "You've tracked mud all over the silver room! We have important guests coming tonight! You shouldn't even be playing in the garden in the first place!"_

_"Sowwy." She shuffled around. She hadn't meant to make daddy so upset._

_"That's not going to cut it, young lady. We told you about the new rule. When we ring the bell, you do as you are told. Since you didn't listen, you have to be punished. Northwests are not messy hooligans."_

* * *

_"D-daddy? Mommy? Pwease come open da door!" She cried, stuck inside a small closet with no windows or lights. "Is dark! I'm scared! Pwease…" She began bawling uncontrollably, unable to escape from the darkness, and no one coming to save her for a good few hours._

_From that day on, Pacifica did her conscious best to never set foot in that room, or on that carpet design… even when she was clean._

* * *

_"I don't know, Lady Pacifica…"_

_"Please, Miss Hollenday? You're the best chef we have!" Seven-year-old Pacifica pleaded to the young chef. She had seen beautiful chocolate chip cookies on TV and was obsessed with learning how to make them._

_"Yes, but your mother has told me numerous times that you aren't allowed to learn… "commoner's work"." She mockingly said, the brit offended by how it had been worded._

_"But I… I'm not learning, I'm just uh… waiting! Waiting for a batch I asked you to make for me!" She reasoned._

_Miss Hollenday smiled at her. "Finding loopholes already, aren't you? Yes… yes, I suppose I could simply make you some cookies. There's no harm in that, right?" She always knew how to brighten up Pacifica's day, whether it be making her food just the way she liked or giving her a nice treat after a troubled day. She was someone Pacifica could confide all her troubles and secrets to._

_Hollenday proceeded to prepare a batch of cookies, with Pacifica watching intently at how each step went. When they had finally come out and cooled, she instantly shoved one in her mouth. "It's… so delicious. These are the best, Miss Hollenday!" The woman gave her a sincere smile in response. A smile Pacifica wished she could see in her mother._

_"I hope they were, young lady. Because you're in big trouble!" Pacifica jolted, finding her mother standing in the doorway. "We told you that you weren't allowed to cook! That is servant work!"_

_"B-but I wasn't learning! I was just having Miss Hollenday make me some!"_

_"I am not a foolish young woman, Pacifica. We rung the bell and told you it wasn't allowed, and you disobeyed us. As punishment, you will not have any meals for the next few days, only water. Northwests are not pigs."_

_"Now hold on a minute! That's too much!" Miss Hollenday balked. "I'll admit I've turned a blind eye to several questionable things you and your husband have done to this town, Priscilla. But I won't let you starve this child!"_

_"Oh please, do not attempt to think you can tell me what to do. Winthrop, take Pacifica to her room." She told a man next to her. "Besides, it will be good for her to lose the weight you've inflicted on her with your 'spoilings'."_

_"Now you listen here, you plastic, barbie doll wench-" The doors to the kitchen slammed, as Pacifica was taken away._

* * *

_When Pacifica had finally been allowed to eat after three days, she had felt so weak. She entered the kitchen for the first time in a while, hoping Miss Hollenday could make her feel better. But she couldn't find her anywhere. "Mister Arpeggio? Where is Miss Hollenday?" She asked the sous chef._

__

"Uh… I… I'm sorry, Lady Pacifica. Miss Hollenday no longer works for the Northwest family."

__

_In spite of feeling unbearably hungry, Pacifica felt too sick to eat that night. She simply sat in her room and cried._

* * *

_"Second place? A lousy second place trophy?! Even after all the training?! What good is all of the hard work we put into you if you only get silver instead of gold?!" Preston chastised, as ten-year-old Pacifica sat there with her mini golf trophy._

_"But… I tried my best. The other girl was just better. I mean, I still had fun!" She argued._

_"Fun? Bah! There is another tournament that the same girl is entering in a few weeks. You will train with Sergei every day until that tournament, however long we tell you!"_

_"But… but I was going to see the Sev'ral Times concert on Friday! And I'm already so tired from today's competitio-"_

_A ringing bell silenced her. "You will do it. Northwests don't settle for second best."_

_She couldn't reject the bell. The bell only meant bad things would happen if she disobeyed. Any bit of happiness in her life would be taken if she didn't abide by the bell. She had to obey. If she obeyed it, she would be happy._

* * *

_The next few weeks had passed, and she had easily beaten the other girl. As she laid down on her bed, exhausted, she took her gloves off, revealing the blisters beneath. And she silently shed tears, too afraid to admit that she wasn't happy at all._

* * *

_"I was right about you all along. You're just as bad as your parents." Dipper told her right to her face. She found herself getting far more upset than she thought she would at these words. "Another link in the world's worst chain!"_

_"I'm sorry! They made me! I should've told you, but-" The bell rung, and she silenced herself. She… she couldn't... but she wanted to so badly. She watched sadly as the boy she'd gotten to know that night walked out the door… another shred of happiness she had found taken from her._

_Always by the bell._

_Preston strolled past her, unmoved by the display. "Hmph. Don't look so glum. Northwests don't have friends. They only have people who can be of use."_

* * *

Pacifica stood there, hyperventilating and stuck in her memories. Preston had yanked her towards him in the meantime. The group had immediately become worried about her. Even Kaiba's concern had been drawn, his eyes open in shock.

"Pacifica? Pacifica! Say something!" Sam shouted.

Julie's eyes glowed green, moving to try and take her from her father. "Ben, she's showing signs of PTSD!"

"What'd you do to her, you no good jackass?!" Jonouchi stepped towards him, intending to throttle the man.

Yugi was strangely silent. His eyes had gone blank.

Preston stood there in silence, his hair messy. He had been reckless, and now... No! "SECURITY!" He yelled off to the side.

Immediately, several of Whimsley's security responded, running over. "What's the matter, sir?"

"These ruffians have disturbed me and upset my daughter greatly. Just look at her!" He gestured to his trembling daughter (who's condition was not helped by Preston's callous approach). "I demand that you apprehend them at once!"

The security guards approached the group, as Preston and Priscilla ran off with Pacifica. "I'm gonna have to ask you folks to come with me." The big one said.

"Hey, hold on a second! That asshole's lying!" The security guard grabbed Jonouchi before he could run after the Northwests. "Get your hand off me before I knock you clean off your feet!"

"Jonouchi, stop! Listen, guys, I can clear this up. Please sirs, that young girl is in a lot of trouble." Ben tried to explain.

"Mr. Tennyson, you've caused more than enough trouble tonight on your own. You have already scared a guest as a giant tiger wrestler man. It's easier to believe you are the source of the problem."

"Guys! He's gone! He's getting away with Pacifica!" Sam pointed out to where the Northwests had been.

"Miss, please step back."

"I don't like this, they're getting way too rowdy." A smaller guard next to him said. "We need to incapacitate them before they bother the other guests."

"Agreed. I'm sorry folks, but if you won't cooperate-"

"STOP!" Everyone turned to find Bruce Wayne, a stern look on his face. "You should be more open-minded to what they have to say. Their statements have merit."

"I… apologize, Mr. Wayne, but they-"

"I have suspicions that Preston Northwest and his wife are abusive to their daughter in one way or another."

"That's a very bold claim, Mr. Wayne. Can you back that up?"

"Sure. I'm sure my associates can attest to it."

"He's right. We can." Ben stepped forward.

"Can any of you tell me of how else Northwest might've treated his daughter?" Wayne asked the group.

Billy bolted up to the front. "Sure! I'll tell ya! The guy came to her earlier and said that she should be happy he was letting her "off the leash" as if she were a dog! Oh, my poor Pacifica…" He muttered the last part.

Sam thought back the entire night, just to make sure. She suddenly remembered the girl's attitude when she had come to help Sam. "She… has the warning signs of issues with her self-worth." She knew that inner conflict all too well.

Surprising the others, Kaiba spoke up. "When I found her, her father had pawned off some hapless suitor to bother her, and was very keen on demanding that she stay under his heel."

"But I think the most damning thing," Ben interjected. "...is right before he called you over. Northwest pulled out a bell and rang it for almost a full minute. I know why, but Pacifica looked as if she had fallen into a panic attack afterward."

"I see. Much of that is telling of how he treats her behind the scenes, but the biggest factor is indeed the bell. All the evidence in hand supports the idea that Preston uses Pavlovian Conditioning on his daughter."

"No way…" Julie said in shock.

"What? What is this Pavlovian Conditioning?" Rook questioned her.

"Pavlovian Conditioning is a method of training to associate with a controlled stimulus. But it's a training that's supposed to be used only on animals." She emphasized the last part.

The group immediately went into an uproar. 'What?!' 'That mustache oaf would treat an angel like Pacifica as an animal?' 'What a pathetic man…'

"Okay! Enough!" The large guard shouted at them. "Mr. Wayne, this information is indeed worrying, but I don't know if we can push ourselves into such a situation…"

Bruce got into his face. "Horace Whimsley has already invited much controversy for inviting criminals to his island. But if word were to get out that Preston turned out to be abusive to his daughter and that Whimsley let such a thing slide instead of helping… do you think he'll be happy that his guards brought such trouble to him?"

"N-n-no." The guard shifted uncomfortably, before speaking into his earpiece. "Close off the mansion at once! No one gets in or out until Preston and Priscilla Northwest are found. Yes sir, I know, but Bruce Wayne has accused him of child abuse. Yes, I can assure you Mr. Wayne can vouch for me. Yes sir, right away." He signaled for his fellow guards to follow him. "Mr. Wayne, since you were so keen on us looking into this, perhaps I could ask you to come vouch for us as we explain to our boss why we're suddenly causing such a ruckus?"

"Of course. Let's leave this group alone. It sounds like they're going through enough as it is." As they walked away, Ben could see Bruce turn back to him and mouth the words _'Find her'_.

Ben nodded. _'Of course. If I didn't back up what I said to her before this all went down, I couldn't look at myself in the mirror.'_ **'You already couldn't.'** _'Shut it, I don't have time for your crap right now.'_

Once the guards were out of sight, Ben gathered the group together. "Alright, everyone just calm down. I know you all want to find Pacifica, but we need to coordinate or else we won't get anywhere fast. Okay? So, Preston can't get out of the mansion now, but there's no telling how long it'll be before security locates him. If we work together, we can get Pacifica away from him and help her through her PTSD-induced panic attack. Everyone onboard?"

"Yeah!" The others agreed. Kaiba only 'hmphed' in response.

However, Anzu was busy looking around. "Uh, Anzu? You onboard or what?" Jonouchi asked.

"Where is he? Jonouchi, Honda, anyone… please tell me you've seen Yugi!" The teens responded instead by looking around. "In the heat of the moment… I only took my eyes off him for a few seconds!"

"Come to think of it, I haven't. Guess he wandered off." Honda replied to her.

Anzu flew into a panic. "No, no, NO, **NO!** We need to find him NOW!"

Her friends were startled by her suddenly losing her cool. "W-what? Why?!" Jonouchi asked her.

"Or else… or else he's going to do something he'll regret forever!"

* * *

Preston peeked out from a room far away from most of the party's commotion. No one yet.

"Preston, what are we going to do? If what you say is true, then…"

"Quiet! I need to think!" He scolded before shutting the door.

He thought no one had seen him. But in the shadows of the hallway, a sinister-looking Yugi watched the door Preston had been peeking from. A golden glowing Egyptian eye was shining on his forehead. He smiled.

" _Saa, game no jikan da._ "


	9. Of Games and Gambits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group splits up to find Pacifica and Yugi. As they race throughout the mansion, they are helpless to stop Yugi from enacting a deal of his own with Preston. This deal isn't written with one's blood though... no, this kind of deal is written with one's soul. Will Pacifica help her father escape from this godforsaken deal? Or will she allow his spirit to be destroyed as retribution for her pain?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (1) The video you should paly here is Yugi's Entrance Theme- Season Zero. I couldn't get the embed to work.
> 
> Please note that in said Yugi has his Toei voice. The voice I imagined in this scenario was his Konami voice, or for those thinking of english voices, Dan Green. He still has a deep voice after all.

Jonouchi grabbed the shoulders of the hysterical girl. "Hold on, Anzu! I know you wanna find Yugi, but can you at least tell us what the heck is going on? Why is Yugi going to do something he'll regret?"

"I-I-I…. I can't say. Not… not like this…"

Jonouchi and Honda stared at her in worried confusion.

Kaiba found the whole situation irritating. If she'd simply calm down and say, then this situation would go far smoother.

Of course, it bothered him even more that he was so invested in their plight. The fact that he would begin to grow unnerved by turning the other way to another's problems was foreign feeling to him.

Still, he figured he might quell that feeling for now. Especially since he had a good inkling what was behind Yugi's mysterious disappearance. "Enough of this nonsense." He gestured to the others observing the debacle. "Stop gawking and search. It won't be hard to find him with that ridiculous hair of his. Be on the lookout for Pacifica. You find one, you find the other." He threw two small devices at Ben and Danny.

"Whoa. Those comms look pretty high tech." Julie said, scrutinizing them with one eye, but instead passing it to Rook. He pressed something on it, and suddenly a small heads up display appeared."

"Yep. Definitely wouldn't get bad service with these." Billy nodded.

"You find them, you contact me. Don't interact with him otherwise."

"Hold on a second!" Sam shouted. "What exactly is going on? You can't just have us search without telling us what's happening!"

Ben crossed his arms. "I have to agree with Sam. You seem to know a lot more than you're letting on. It'd be nice to know what's happening."

"The only thing you need to know… is that we're trying to stop him from finding Pacifica's parents, ideally. In reality, he's likely already found them, and our best effort is damage control." Anzu looked at Kaiba with wide eyes.

Ben stared at him for a moment. "Alright, I remember which direction I saw Pacifica's family going. Come on." Everyone followed the young teen until they stopped at a fork in the road. Three hallways stood before them. "We'll have to split up in those hallways to find them. Search any room you can find. If it's locked, listen in for their voices."

"On it. Come on, Sam." Danny pulled his girlfriend along. She glared at Kaiba for another second as she was lead away.

"Jules, Rook, let's get a move on. We may not be able to use our powers, but we still got long legs. I say we use 'em." The two nodded. Ben gave one quick look to Kaiba as well, before heading into a separate hallway.

"Well, I say we go down this way." Jonouchi said, pointing to the last possible hallway their quarry could be. He, Honda, Anzu and Mokuba set down for the last hallway-

"Guys…" Anzu began. But she was too quiet, too nervous. They didn't seem to notice… all except for Kaiba.

"Anzu." The four turned their attention to Kaiba. "Yugi… he's been possessed by shadow magic, hasn't he?"

Jonouchi, Honda and Mokuba gasped. Anzu's eyes drifted to the floor. "…Yes."

"What?!" Jonouchi shouted, prompting Honda to clamp a hand over his mouth.

Mokuba shook off his shock. "I thought we were done with that stuff after the Aigami incident!"

"Clearly not." Kaiba huffed.

"How could this have happened… and why do you know about it, Anzu?" Honda questioned as Jonouchi took his friend's hand off his mouth.

Anzu clutched her arms. She felt everyone's stares on her, expecting an answer. Yugi didn't want them to know like this… but at this point, his safety was more important. "It was… it was right as the Aigami incident ended. When Atem saved Yugi."

"Hold on, he's not back in Yugi's body again, is he?" Jonouchi asked, not understanding.

"No. Atem's spirit has moved on. Defeating Aigami was an exception, and nothing else. But… that's the thing. Atem knew he couldn't keep coming out of the spirit world to save us like that. And… he knew Yugi would have won had Aigami's shadow magic not affected him. So before he left again… he gave Yugi a way to face any supernatural threats from then on." Anzu finally brought her eyes back up to her friends. "Atem gave Yugi the ability to use shadow magic."

Everyone's jaws dropped, sans Kaiba. He simply 'hmphed' and started down the hallway. That seemed to help the others snap out of it as they began to follow, but they stayed quiet for a little bit.

Jonouchi was the first to speak again. "Why didn't Yugi tell us?"

"He was going to. At the end of the week. He didn't want to worry anybody."

"So, when did you find out?" Honda pressed.

"He came to visit. He was in town to help promote a KaibaCorp location in New York. We…caught up. He didn't tell me at first, but then… well, remember that stalker I told you guys about?"

Jonouchi and Honda thought back to their talk in the limo. Jonouchi snapped his fingers. "You said you had a friend help you catch him… that was Yugi?"

"That explains why he was so uncomfortable when you talked about it." Honda connected.

Mokuba began to ponder. "But… this still doesn't explain why Yugi disappeared."

"Yugi doesn't have control over his powers yet. When he sees something heinous happen or feels someone evil overall… the shadow magic takes over."

"Just like the first few times Atem took over!" Jonouchi pieced together.

"And when Pacifica's dad used that bell…" Honda started.

Kaiba narrowed his eyes. "He signed his own death warrant."

* * *

Pacifica sat there, still stuck within her own mind. Bad memories played one after another, warping her sense of reality. She was shaking as if she had been in a blizzard.

Her parents talked in the meantime. "How are we getting out of this, Preston?!"

"I told you to SHUT UP! Okay… okay… let's see… We'll just need several briberies… yes, briberies! I'm sure some of Whimsley's servants won't mind fattening their wallets a bit more." He reasoned to himself.

"What about Pacifica? She's a liability to us like this!"

"Oh, she'll get over it! I have more important things to worry about!" He said dismissively. "Hmm… this is probably the first time in years I'll have to use pappy's instructions on burying bodies…"

Completely unnoticed by the two squabbling, the door opened, oddly without a sound. Yugi entered, heading straight for Pacifica. The door behind him locked.

The young girl had yet to recover, still suffering. But as he arrived next to her, the eye on his forehead lit up once more.

He spoke, and only Pacifica seemingly heard his voice. **"Don't worry, Pacifica. Your friends are with you, even if they aren't physically here. I know from experience… but I also know the darkness of this trauma inflicted upon you by others will cover their memories like a shroud. Let me help you dispel the clouds in your mind."**

The memory of Bruce Wayne giving her the card for a professional therapist appeared, reminding her how man on top of the world took the time to express concern.

The moments in which a infatuated, but sincere Billy Billions wished to help her.

The points at which Sam had warmed up to her, finally letting go of her 'mean girl' suspicions.

The images of Kaiba being a stern yet powerful influence.

The antics of Yugi and the others, that made her feel at home.

The words of Ben telling her that everyone she had met would be there for her, even if they had only just met her.

And then… the people she remembered in Gravity Falls.

_"Ah, what's the matter, Dazzly Paz?" Miss Hollenday wiped away her tears, unaware of Pacifica's punishment for tracking mud into the silver room. "Hush, love. I can dry those tears for you. I'll make you the best shepherd's pie, one my mum used to make me."_

_"Come on, Pacifica! Mabel may not be here, but we will take over midnight in her honor." "YEAH! With our powers combined, we will own EVERYONE on this dance floor!" Candy and Grenda said as they pulled her onto the dance floor._

_"You're something else, dude." Wendy told her as they sat on a bruised and battered ogre. She pulled the girl in for a tight side hug. "You ever want to hang out, I'm always up for it. A camping trip, lumberjack lessons, apocalypse training… I'll show you all the ropes. Consider me… your official big sister, Paz."_

_"Hey Dood! Whatcha standing in the rain for?" The handyman pulled up beside her in his truck. "Come on, my abuelita's making me and Melody some amazing tacos! Don't deny it, Mabel already told me you like tacos! Ha Ha!"_

_"Why hello there, Pacifica! You'll have to excuse the smoke, I had to immolate myself to deal with a swarm of nasty lizard-spiders. Horrifying things, you know. But it had to be done so I could get this!" Ford held up a large bag of silk. "Lizard-spider silk reacts to the wearers thoughts, changing color and textures at will! It's supposed to be your birthday present, but it will need to be sewn together by the Spider-Queen of the southern caves. It could take until say… Spring break for her to finish." He gave a weak chuckle. "Listen, I know you didn't want me to do anything about it after Mabel accidentally told me, but… well, let's just say Stanley and I never did find that special someone we were able to stay with. I think you and Dipper can make it in this crazy, anomaly filled world."_

_Stan tapped her shoulder with his eight-ball cane. "Hey kid, you just gonna stand out here? I know you miss my niece and nephew, but watching how idiots get suckered into this tourist trap is even less interesting than watching paint dry. Look, if it makes you get off my porch, Ford and I are calling them to catch up in a few hours, and we'll need someone who can bear talking about Pukeymans or whatever." He entered back through the front door, but stopped. "You know, if you do some sweeping up around in the store, I'll let you get an ice cream or something out from the shop."_

_"Come on, Pacifica! Me and the ladies are going out for a great time at the mall! That dreamboat from the new romance movie "Oops! I dropped all my books!" is going to be there! We're heading over right now for autographs and potential restraining orders! After that, we're heading to the see the movie, before ending off the night with a slumber party! You're going to get the full "Mabel Friend" experience!" She took Pacifica's hands into hers. "Oh, don't give me that face. You and I are buddies now, through thick and thin."_

_"Pacifica, you gotta stop worrying about what others think." Dipper advised her, as they sat in the burlap sack. "…You're smart, creative, confident… Forget about your dumb family. Ever since you saved me at Northwest Manor, I've noticed another side of you. I think I see the real Pacifica… and you're more than just a pretty face."_

Pacifica gasped for air, tears streaming down her eyes. She felt like she had just been freed from a prison of fire and crushing pressure. She struggled to speak, as if her voice had been taken from her. As her breathing calmed and the sweat stopped pouring from her head, she looked at her new surroundings. Now, emerging from a wide-awake nightmare would already put a damper on someone's evening. But realizing she had been taken against her will by her ass of a father plummeted Pacifica's mood underground.

"Y…you… bastard…"

Her father gave a quick glance at the girl. "Hmph. I was wondering when you'd stop shedding crocodile tears."

"Fuck… off…" She bitterly said.

"You want to use that language with me, after what just occurred? Perhaps if it bothered you so much, you'd care if I use it again." He threatened.

"Please, there isn't a need to be hostile. There are other ways of solving this problem."

The two parents jumped at the voice, finding the spiky-haired shorty sitting by the large table in the room. (1)

"Yu…gi?" Pacifica was hopeful at first… but her heart paused when she saw Yugi's eyes. There was a darkness behind them that stopped her cold.

"What the- what are you doing here?! What gives you the right to invade our privacy?!"

Yugi simply chuckled. "Oh, just here to make an offer."

Pacifica was shocked at the voice that came out of his mouth. It was far darker than how Yugi had sounded earlier. Not only that, she remembered hearing him speak to her in her mind. Who else could do something like that?

There was no doubt about it, now. She had hoped it wasn't him. But Yugi had clearly been possessed by the most dreaded creature she'd ever known. She had gone from one nightmare to another.

Bill Cipher had returned.

Pacifica's parents stared at the young man, completely baffled. "Don't come in here and say such preposterous things! I'm not in the mood for jokes! GET OUT!" Preston slapped a hand over his mouth and listened to the door.

"Ah, yes. Shout more. Get their attention. Makes no difference to me, honestly. I was only here to offer you a way out." Yugi had taken a bottle of wine from a cabinet, pouring himself a glass. "But if you'd rather ignore it…"

"A way out?" Preston squinted. "What are you on about?"

Yugi sat down at a chair facing a small table. Another chair was situated on the opposite side, one he gestured to. "Sit down and I'll tell you."

Preston did so, his interest piqued through a mix of desperation, amusement, and curiosity. "Alright. How can one man help me get out of this mess?"

"I have some interesting abilities, Mr. Northwest. All of them powered by magic."

"Magic?"

"Yes. And using my magic abilities, I could easily alter people's minds so that they don't notice you escape. Or… better yet… I could make them forget all your wrongdoings."

 _"He… he wants to make a deal with my father. What could he possibly get out of my dad?"_ Pacifica thought, lacking the energy to interfere.

Luckily, this claim only seemed to upset Preston. He was expecting a person with powerful connections, not a boy who could pull rabbits of hats. "Well, that is certainly the claim. And a load of…" He stopped himself, biting his lip. "Anyway, I have little time for your jokes." He began to get up.

"Ah, but I can prove it to you." Yugi pulled out his duel monsters deck. From the deck, he took a card named **Sentry Soldier of Stone**. "This monster shall now come to life and attack you."

"And here I was to assume you wanted me to pick a card. What next, are you going to saw my wife in ha-ha-HAAAAAAAAAAA!" Preston shouted, being suddenly picked up by a giant stone hand. He dangled around, frantically waving his arms and legs. He stopped when he noticed the rock monster's face looking right at him.

Pacifica looked at the creature in horror. Dipper had told her many things about the triangle, but he had been clear to note that he had none of his power while possessing someone. What was going on?

Yugi snapped his fingers and the monstrous apparition disappeared, dropping Preston to the floor. He was shaken, but otherwise alright.

"Do you believe me now?" Yugi grinned.

"Erm… yes." Preston dusted himself off and fixed his clothing, sitting back into the chair. "So, what are the details of this deal?"

"I will manipulate the minds of those chasing you to completely absolve you of your crimes. However… I will not do so for free."

"Of… of course. How much would you like to be billed?" If it was one thing he learned tonight, it was that he should most certainly pay powerful individuals.

"No money. If you want me to help you… you must play a game."

"A game?" Preston asked incredulously. Pacifica was feeling the same way. What was Bill up to? When he wanted something, he would just make a straight deal. This wasn't his style.

"Ah, but not just any game. A Yami no Game… or as you Americans would call it, a Shadow Game. It is a game of mental willpower as much as it is a game of wits." He swirled the wine around in his cup. "If you win this game, I will do as I've told you- I'll help you escape from this mess. But if you lose… you and your wife will willingly tell the world of your crimes and suffer a penalty."

Preston was once again turned off from the idea. "Now hold on a minute. I'm not risking so much on a game you get to dictate."

"Ah, but that's the best part, Preston." He pointed at the Northwest. "You are the one who gets to pick the game, and which type of it we play- at all times. The only constants are that we must play three rounds, each round played with the exact rules listed- not changing. That, and that the rules must be explained."

Preston raised an eyebrow at the short boy. He would get to determine the parameters of the game they played?

Priscilla could only stand behind her husband and look on. Meanwhile, Pacifica was a little less confused about the setup. _"Okay, so there's still a catch… even so, when Bill makes a deal, he just does it. He doesn't beat around the bush like this."_

Preston, who had been pondering on Yugi's words, grew a sickly smile. If he could choose the game, then he could pick any game this brat couldn't possibly understand. And he remembered just the game from his youth to play.

"Alright then, boy. I accept your deal."

"Are you sure? Your wife seems nervous about such an agreement."

"What she thinks is none of my concern. Isn't that right?" Preston asked her. Priscilla nodded, but… not with all that much confidence. "Now then, let me see…" Preston got up and began searching through the various cabinets, taking time to ensure everything there could be used. Yugi watched as he brought over a cloth and a box of numerous buttons. Before he did anything else, he set the cloth down and began drawing, Yugi observing with a straight face. The finished drawing looked like an outline of a plus sign, divided as five squares. Each square had been bisected diagonally, horizontally and vertically, creating a simple pattern. Preston then meticulously picked out buttons from the box, until he had 13 white buttons and one large brown one. "There we are. Now then, young man. This is the game of Fox and Geese. The rules are quite simple."

Preston gestured to each item as he talked about them. "There are thirteen geese and one fox. The goal of the geese is to surround the fox so that it can no longer move. The goal of the fox is to take enough geese so that they cannot surround the fox. Simple rules, no?"

"Indeed."

"We shall do series of three rounds. Obviously, two out of three takes the whole thing." Preston took a coin out of his pocket. "We flip to determine who is the fox. I choose heads." He flipped the coin, looking at the result in his hand. "Hmm. Tails. Lucky you."

Setting up the game, Preston held the geese on his side, with the fox on Yugi's side. Yugi looked at the configuration before him before looking back up at Preston. His sinister smile returned.

"Game start."

* * *

"Mazuma, are you sure your scanners aren't picking up anything?" Billy asked.

"It's as I told you, Mr. Billions. Something's interfering with my scanners. My readings are all over the place."

"Well, this is just perfect. Pacifica's in trouble and I can't even find her at all."

"Perhaps, sir, it may be time to consider fully cooperating with Ben Tennyson."

"Pacifica just said I had to play nice with him. That doesn't mean I have to go groveling to him for help." Billy growled.

"True, Mr. Billions. But we are out of options. If we do not team up with him, Pacifica could be hurt even more before we find her." Mazuma argued. "Plus, would she not be happy if you were to show that you are getting along with Tennyson?"

"Well… you… I…" Billy groaned, defeated by her reasoning, and equally pushed down by his flustered thoughts. "You know, sometimes I hate how smart I made you. Fine, we'll go get his help."

Mazuma nodded. "They are just up ahead."

It didn't take long to catch up to Ben, and Billy saw him emerge from a room. The teen noticed Billy approaching, and raised an eyebrow.

Billy looked at him and grimaced. "So… Mazuma's scans can't find them."

Ben smirked. "And?"

"And I'm getting frustrated at being unable to find Pacifica."

"And?"

"And as much as I'd like to smash your face in for being so smug about this…" He took a deep breath. "I need your help."

"There we go. Well, we haven't much luck either. Rook even ended up walking in on a couple… uh… well, let's just say they forgot to lock the door."

"I requested that we never speak of that again." Rook came out from another room, a blush on his face.

Julie in turn came from a corner. "Still nothing."

Billy balked. "Seriously? Can't you turn into an alien or something?"

Ben rejected that idea. "Not without permission from security. Not to mention, 1: they're still upset with me for scaring off that rich boy, and 2: I don't think they'll be too keen on us taking the law into our own hands. Sort of… What about you? How come your robot can't pick up the readings of a single girl?"

"I would, so that I wouldn't have to come to you in the first place, but something is making Mazuma's sensors go haywire. She can't get a lock on anything."

"You're getting interference? Is it from Whimsley's security measures?"

"No. The interference is coming from somewhere else." Mazuma noted. "It is almost as if my scans are glitching."

Julie looked to Ben, who simply nodded. She looked back to Mazuma, and her eyes flashed green, something Billy noticed. Mazuma widened her eyes in surprise, before nodding to her.

"Uh… Mazuma, what's going on?" Billy asked his robo-bodyguard.

"Julie has requested I send what readings I could find to her."

"…She has?"

"Yes."

"Um…" Billy looked to Julie, not seeing any kind of device to receive that info. "To like, her phone, or something?"

"No, to her."

This baffled Billy, as he tried to think how Julie could have possibly sent a request. "Oh! I get it now. Her little pet is going to take the info."

Julie at the others flinched at the mention of that. Even Billy could tell that the atmosphere had suddenly grown more somber.

"No, Mr. Billions, I am just sending it to her."

"What? How can she send data requests and receive digital information? Unless…" He remembered the glowing green eyes. "Tennyson, is your girlfriend a cyborg now?"

"No." Ben sternly said.

"He's right, I detect no cybernetics within her. However, even with my glitching sensors, her readings tell me she is-"

"It's not important." Ben said bluntly. His tone was dead serious, to the point even Billy was taken aback. "So please drop it."

Billy decided to leave it at that, in no mood to open up whatever can of worms that was about. After that incohesive and awkward conversation, the group stood around as Julie supposedly processed the data given to her.

"Ben… these readings… they're similar to the mana of Ledgerdomain. But something about them is… off."

"Dark magic, maybe?"

"I don't know. I'm sending this to both Gwen and Hope. Maybe they can tell us."

"Can you triangulate the source?"

"Now that, I can do." Her eyes darted around. To someone beside her it looked as if she was randomly staring at walls and doors. "There, over by that far corner of the mansion. I think we found our missing friends."

"I knew Kaiba was hiding something." He tapped the comm. "Hey, Pacifica rescue team, we found something. We're sending you the coordinates, over." He handed over to Julie. "Gotta say Billy, that did make things go much quicker. We probably wouldn't have thought to scan for mana if it wasn't for Mazuma. Good job."

Billy sneered. "Oh yeah, Tennyson? Well, for your information… um… wait, were you being serious?" He asked.

"Um… Yeah? Is something wrong?"

"No…" Billy said in surprise, before puffing out his chest. "It's just… nice to see you finally acknowledging my capabilities. Mazuma is top of the line, after all."

"You flatter me, sir."

Ben rolled his eyes. "Ok, ego trip, I get it. Now do you want to save your megacrush or not?"

"Of course I do, how can you ask me- wait." Billy stopped himself, as the three Plumbers were chuckling and giggling at his response. They quickly ran off to the room.

"Told you." He heard Julie say to Ben.

Billy stood there for a moment. "…Grrrrrr…. You get back here, you jerks! Mazuma, come on! You three just made me trip up on my words is all! If you spread that around…." He hopped on his bodyguard to chase them down. However, as they ran after them, Billy thought to ask Mazuma something out of curiosity. "Mazuma, what were you about to tell me earlier? About Julie and your scans?"

"Her DNA only reads half human, sir. The other half is Galvanic Mechamorph."

* * *

When the game had begun, Preston had made no time having his geese avoid the fox. Even so, he had already lost one to Yugi, in spite of him only teaching the boy about the game today. It was likely he wasn't going to win this one. But he had to put in the effort to pull the wool over this boy's eyes.

Try as he might, he couldn't seem to trap Yugi's fox. But that was to be expected. The fox was far more reliable to play as, not nearly as restricted as the geese in terms of rules. It was something he admired about this game, ever since his father taught it to him when he was a child.

_"Know this, son. You are the fox. You must always be the fox. Clever, cunning, and a deadly bite… the last one is metaphorical of course, Northwests do not bite people. Anyway, the geese are the common folk. Oh, they may be aggressive and completely savage, but no matter how high they fly, they will always be beneath you. Their ferocity is nothing to your intelligence and top status in the end." His father held the piece in front of his eyes. "Don't ever let them bring you down to their level. If any geese ever threaten to take you from your spot in the food chain, you show them exactly why you are a fox in the first place. Northwests don't lose."_

He made sure to remember that well into his adult life. He was the fox. He would always come back on top, ready to put those of the lower classes under his heel. Which is why he was certain he would still take the entire game, even after losing this round. Sure, he may have not received the fox in the first round. Especially since he had a surefire way of obtaining the fox in the next two matches.

It wasn't long before the game ended, Preston having far too few geese to capture the fox. "Oh dear. Seems you took the first round. What a shame. Hopefully, I can take the next two."

Pacifica had been watching the first round, after which she had finally found her voice again, though it was still weak. "Dad, you… are the biggest idiot. Do… do you not see who that is?"

Preston seemingly did not hear her, his focus completely absorbed into the game. Pacifica guessed that his mind had been consumed. She could only hope the full force of her voice could snap him out of her trance.

"Although, I might have won if someone wasn't blabbering in the background."

Or he was just being a dick as usual. Pacifica briefly pondered letting him fuck himself over.

"Now then, since you wielded the fox on the last round, it is only fair that I use it for this one. We will toss another coin to determine the last round's wielder."

"Makes sense." His opponent smirked. Preston smirked back. This young fool had no idea that Preston was going to steal the victory from him.

* * *

"Still no luck?" Julie asked her boyfriend.

"It won't budge. Also, it stung me. Whatever this magic stuff is, it's protecting the door. Also warping its properties, probably. Either or, honestly."

Rook had been trying to scan the door for weak points. "Any word from Gwendolyn or Hope?"

"Nothing. They might be busy. Or time zones. Does Ledgerdomain match up with Earth time zones?" Julie tried doing the math in her head.

"Who cares? Can't we just blast down the door?" Billy yelled, tired of the small talk.

Ben shook his head. "We're risking enough as it is scanning everything. This… "dark mana" is making everything go haywire, so it gives us a chance to use our tech without being noticed. Blasting a hole here wouldn't be easy to explain. Not that it would work. Whatever's over this door would probably shield from that too. Then we'd just be making unnecessary noise."

"Oh yeah? How come your stuff isn't going crazy?" Billy crossed his arms.

"Let's just say my cousin's got us covered in that regard."

"I'M HERE! WHERE'S PACIFICA?! WHERE'S HER BASTARD FATHER?!" Sam came screaming around the corner. Danny followed right behind, huffing a bit.

"Right behind this ooky spooky door." Julie answered. Sam went to open it. "Whoa! No touchy. It's protected by some kind of magic. Hence the ooky spooky."

"That doesn't sound too bad. Me and my family deal with ooky spooky constantly." Danny replied.

"Not the same. Whatever it is, it's got heinous properties to it. Hold on to it too long and there's no telling what will happen."

"It's a very strong magic. Nothing any of you will do will get through that door." Kaiba said, drawing everyone's attention to him. Yugi's friends weren't far behind.

"Alright Kaiba, spill. Me and my crew already know there's some weird magic covering that door, and likely the room too. We need the full story here."

Sam marched up to Kaiba, fuming. "I knew you were up to no good. It's always the same with you business types, keeping important information from the public just because it'll damage your image. What do you know, scumbag?! Just what kind of danger is Pacifica in?!

But Kaiba completely ignored her, only answering Ben. "I told you before. The only thing you need to know is that we're here for damage control. (Sam: Hey, I'm talking to you!) Telling you anything else won't help you get past that door. (Sam: Listen to me, you damn suit! / Rook: Miss Manson, I believe the term is called "Know when to fold them".)"

"Kaiba, would you give it a rest with that cold shoulder treatment? Everyone knows telling a hero all the information, even if it's only a little bit, can help them." Jonouchi shoved past the mogul.

Kaiba swept his hand away. "If you ever used your brain to think logically, you'd know that there's nothing more they can do in this situation. It will also just serve to make things needlessly complicated afterward."

"Yeah, yeah, clam up as always. Listen Ben, what we're looking at here is shadow magic. The Egyptian pharaohs and royals used it back in the day to duel each other. Anyone who uses it has the power to affect people's minds in crazy ways, and even their soul. They even have the power to call monsters from some crazy dimension."

Julie nodded. "Sounds like pretty standard magic. But I can't seem to dispel this barrier with any of my anti-magic frequencies. Whatever "spell" or "enchantment" is surrounding this room is pretty potent stuff."

"It's a Yami no Game." Anzu said, her eyes obsessed with the ground. "Or a Shadow Game. A game designed to punish the souls of the wicked. Nothing can interfere until the game is over. It's the signature of any shadow magic user."

"That matches up with what Gwen just sent me- wait… yep, both Gwen and Hope. They're telling us to be on code red awareness. This mana is dangerous and powerful."

Ben turned back to Jonouchi. "Still, it helps. We know what we're dealing with now. All that's left is to figure out why the culprit did it. Which I'm assuming has something to do with Yugi."

"Wait Ben, please! Yugi's not in control of what he's doing! It's just… when he sees someone with an evil soul, the shadow magic takes him over. He's been trying to learn to control it, but-"

"Whoa, whoa! Anzu, hang on! We'll figure this out okay? I could tell he wasn't the kind of guy to do something like this. If you guys can tell me more, maybe we can stop this before it gets more out of hand."

Sam in the meanwhile, sat on the sidelines with a huff. A nudge from Danny brought her out of it. "Hey, I'm gonna see if I can phase through. Can you keep watch?" Sam nodded.

Anzu was telling the others of a previous event. "… so Yugi challenged him to a game where they had to untie knots in a tangled series of ropes to see which would drop my spare key. Yugi beat him easily, but the guy was a sore loser. He tried to attack, but Yugi's shadow magic easily paralyzed him. He was planning to destroy his soul outright, but I had managed to find him and talk him down. Even still, he inflicted a penalty game on the creep. He used the rope the guy was planning to tie me up with as sort of an ironic punishment. The guy would be forced to play tug-of-war with a monster for his soul. When Yugi came to his senses, he was horrified."

Rook cringed at the description of the punishment. "That is disturbing. That there is magic out there that causes such torture on a soul, makes me wonder why this pharoah would give his supposed friend this dangerous power."

"Well… after Yugi snapped out of it, a friend visited us… Shadi. He told us that Atem had foreseen that we'd be forced to encounter more magical threats in the future. He gave Yugi the ability to use shadow magic because he believed he could control it. He also told us that Yugi wasn't turned into a different person, his darker emotions were just brought out by the shadows. But he warned us that if Yugi didn't rein the magic in, it would split his mind in two, like Mari-… someone we know."

"All the more reason to get that door open. Jules, we might be able to risk pumping up the output on your frequencies-"

"GAAAAHHH!" They were interrupted as Danny was sent flying into a wall.

"Danny!" Sam ran to him, kneeling to see if he was alright. Ben came to check on him as well.

"Danny, what happened?"

"I uh… I tried to force it open. I guess I held on too long. I saw this vision of a golden, Egyptian looking eye staring at me. It shouted at me to not interfere, and I was flung out- I mean, back." Ben raised an eyebrow. Danny had a feeling that he knew the boy was actually using his powers, but he didn't need the others in the group knowing that.

"Welp, no sense in not trying. This door'll have to give out sooner or later!" Jonouchi approached it, rearing his leg back. "Always wanted to kick down a door like this."

Ben's eyes widened. "Jonouchi, wait, HOLD ON-"

* * *

THWACK. " ** _AGH, MY ANKLE!_** "

 _"That sounded like Jonouchi!"_ Pacifica thought. The noise had interrupted the game for a brief moment, as Preston worriedly turned to the door.

"The people outside will not be able to interrupt our game, Preston." Yugi assured.

" _Here, let me get in on this!_ " THWACK. " ** _GAH, NOW_ MY _ANKLE!"_**

_"That was definitely Honda."_ Pacifica wondered why they weren't able to make it through the door. Bill couldn't just shield doors in the waking world, right? 

"You'd better be damn sure." Preston grumbled. But as he looked at the game in front of him, his worry turned to smugness. "Then again, you might be better off hoping they make it in. I've almost collected all the geese this round." 

THWACK. " ** _ARGH, MY OTHER ANKLE!_** " Yelled Jonouchi again. 

Pacifica decided letting her dad get tricked wasn't worth the trouble. "EARTH TO DAD! Are you not connecting the dots? That's clearly Bill Cipher!" 

Preston froze at the name, finally hearing what she had to say. He looked back and forth from Yugi and Pacifica in a panic. Yugi simply looked confused. 

"Bill… Cipher?" 

"Think about it, Dad. A creepy guy with magic powers offers you a deal? Ring any bells?" She paused for a moment and twitched at her poor choice of words. "He's acting completely different from how I met him before, and to top it off, he talked to me in my mind. My mind. It has to be him!" 

"N-no. It can't be him. He's dead!" 

Yugi defended himself. "I don't know who this 'Bill' is, but I can assure you that I am not him." 

"Oh come on! Don't think you can trick me! Who else could get into people's heads like this? Just what were you looking for in there, huh?" 

"I only did that to help you. I saw none of your memories myself, I only stimulated your mind to remember moments that could bring you out of your traumatic memories." 

"Then what's all this, then? Making deals like you always do to get something you want. You aren't fooling me!" 

"We do seem to share some similarities. But I am still not him." Yugi closed his eyes. "However… if I am to be honest, the name does sound familiar to me, even though I have never heard the name before. The name emits a feeling of power and terror when I hear it. Also, a fair dose of insanity. It feels as if I should know him in my soul." He chuckles. "You are understandably worried. I don't blame you for calling me this creature, Pacifica. The only thing I can ask is that you can trust me and believe that I am not him." 

Pacifica wasn't expecting this response. It was highly probable that he was Bill, but she was having second thoughts. 

"I get it now." Preston clenched his fist. "You are trying to keep me from turning our life back to normal. You know that this boy can make everything the way it used to be, so you're trying to scare me into backing out. Well, it won't work!" He took his fox and jumped over Yugi's last possible piece. "This is our big break, and I will not let you squander it!" Pacifica only glared at him. 

Yugi turned back to Preston. "It seems you've taken the round. Shall we toss the coin to determine the last fox player?" 

Preston nodded. "We shall." 

" _Maybe if we threw our whole body into it!_ " 

Preston noticed the noise and turned back to the door. "Must they persist in making so much noise?" Unbeknownst to his opponent, he was actually using the opportunity to take a different coin out of his coat. 

"If I know my friends, Anzu will stop them-" Yugi paused, the thought of Anzu striking him. It was immediately followed by images of Jonouchi and Honda. 

"Something wrong?" Preston asked, more out of annoyance than worry. 

"N…No. It's nothing." He waved it off, and Preston flipped the coin. 

"Ah hah! Heads! I guess that means the fox is mine." 

Yugi stared at the coin. His eyes shifted up to Preston, his smile gone. He seemed to be studying the man, an implication that started to make Preston uncomfortable. Before he could shout at Yugi to cut it out, Yugi's smile returned. "So it is." Preston looked unamused. As he went to pick up his fox, Yugi suddenly continued. "Care to up the stakes, Preston?" 

Preston gave him a funny look. "Really? Are you sure about that?" Once again, not out of worry, but of mere confusion. 

"Why not? High stakes make a game all the more entertaining. Here's what I have in mind. If you lose, considering that you will go to jail, you will release custody of your daughter and give all your assets to her. If you win, I will give you… my soul." 

All three Northwests gasped in shock. "Your… soul? Are you trying to say that you be in service to me forever?" 

"Perhaps." 

Preston grimaced. "I don't know…" He wasn't keen about betting what was left of his fortune. 

"How about we sweeten the deal, then? For this last round, I will only use four geese." 

Preston snorted. "FOUR geese? There's only one way to trap my fox in that case! Have you gone completely bonkers?" Preston laughed, then stretched his hand out. "Never mind boy, I'll take your wager." 

"Yugi, hold on!" Pacifica shouted. "If it really is still you in there, you need to rethink this! My dad may be an idiot, but he can still be kind of crafty! For god's sake, this is your soul we're talking about!" 

"I know. But it is my soul to bet." Yugi said, shaking Preston's hand. "Last round, start." 

* * *

" **AH, NOW MY SHOULDER!** " Honda shouted as he stumbled back. 

"Would you two idiots cut it out already?!" Anzu growled, pulling on the ears of Honda and Jonouchi. "This isn't helping!" 

"Hmph. You should let them keep going. It's amusing to see them maim themselves. Most entertaining thing I've witnessed tonight." Kaiba said, however his stone-faced expression seemed to say the opposite. 

"Trying to use ourselves as battering rams isn't going to cut it. I might be able to just walk in if I use Terraspin." Ben suggested. 

Julie tilted her head. "I'm not sure if his species can shrug off this kind of mana." 

Suddenly, shouting came from inside the " _Guys, is that you out there?! I mean, I know Jonouchi and Honda are attacking the door and all, but-_ " 

"Pacifica?" Ben went up to the door. "Are you alright? Last time we saw you, you weren't looking too good!" 

" _I'm fine now. I'm more worried about Yugi! He's been acting strange! He challenged my dad to some kind of game! They're in the final round! It's like he's been possessed!_ " 

Yugi's friends ran up to the door. Jonouchi was the first to speak. "You're not too far off! He's been taken over by shadow magic!" 

" _I knew it, I-… wait, what the heck is shadow magic?_ " 

Honda answered that. "What it says on the tin, Pacifica! Don't worry, that's still Yugi. It's just his worst traits are being brought out by the magic! Boy, sure hope we don't have to keep re-explaining that…" 

" _…Are… are you sure he wasn't possessed by a demon?_ " 

"Uh…no. Pretty confident." 

Anzu spoke up. "Can they hear us in there?" 

" _Trust me, all of us can hear you!_ " 

"Yugi! You need to stop! Remember, this isn't you!" 

" _It looks like he's trying to ignore you! He seems distressed!_ " 

"The shadow magic is making him think he's something he's not! Pacifica, listen, there's no way to stop the game now, but you can at least stop Yugi from doing something terrible!" 

" _What? What's he going to do?_ " 

"He's going to destroy your parents' souls! That's the only penalty game the shadow magic thinks corrupted people deserve! You need to convince him to spare your parents! …Pacifica? Pacifica!" 

"The mana field around the room just intensified. I think Yugi's doing this to block you out." Julie told them. 

Ben tensed. "Let's just hope Pacifica caught enough of that to go off of." 

* * *

"Anzu? Anzu! He's going to destroy what?!" Pacifica kept asking, to no avail. "Lousy magic door connection…"

Yugi reeled his hand back, which he had been pointing at the door. "I apologize, but that was getting distracting."

Preston grunted. "Well, maybe now you can actually make your next move. Not that it would be all that different from your last few turns. Just more running away."

"Well, I can't have your fox getting too close, now can I?" Yugi moved his piece.

"Understandable. The fox is the superior piece, after all." Preston gave chase.

"Actually, the geese are considered to be superior."

Preston paused. He seemed very sure about that fact. "W-well. To a novice, the idea of greater numbers seems enticing. But it all falls apart eventually."

"Not to a strategic player. With only four geese, it is challenging, yes. But not impossible to lull the fox into a trap."

Preston grumbled as he continued to go after Yugi's pieces, still not getting any of them. "The fox has the greater movement and options to capture the geese."

"Not necessarily. In fact, in previous versions of the game like its origin point in Scandinavia, an extra fox is given. It's called Halatafl there, you know?"

Preston stared at him in confusion. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Much, if you were willing to think about it. If you bothered to know the game you challenged me with, you would have a better strategy to beat me. As it stands though, your moves are like those of a novice. Like a child, you gravitated towards a piece you thought had the most power. You aggressively rush to finish a game. You care little to think of both the little details or the bigger picture."

Preston clenched his teeth. "You're very arrogant for someone who's never played this game."

"Who told you that? Not me."

Preston froze.

"In fact, I can tell you quite a few things about this game. But the most important… is that I know of the 13 piece cheat." Preston's eyes widened. "Using only 13 geese is a disadvantage for the geese player. Less mistakes they can make before too many pieces are captured."

"Wha… but I… you…"

"It's as I told you before. I never told you that I never played Fox and Geese. You only decided to assume that." His smile grew even wider. "They call me the King of Games for a reason. Fox and Geese is such a simple game in comparison to all of the others in the world. Why would I not know this game?" The shadows were starting to grow longer, stretching to encompass the room. "Then again, you probably don't consider others unless it benefits you, don't you?"

Preston took notice of the shadows now surrounding them. "What's… what's going on?" 

"Nothing that concerns you… yet. You should probably make your move." 

Preston took some time, but he decided to continue playing, if only to keep his mind off of his own fear. He continued to chase the geese, but he could never get any closer to the pieces. He started to sweat, his brow furrowing in frustration. "Stop running!" 

"You would like that wouldn't you? Because then you would have your prey." 

Yugi stared into Preston, seemingly boring into his very soul. He darted his head down, trembling in fear. He tried to move his piece again, but for some reason it wouldn't move forward. No matter how much he forced it, it stayed put. "What… what are you doing? You're… you're cheating somehow!" 

"That's rich, coming from you. No pun intended. Really though, the only cheating that's occurred is when you used that two headed coin." Preston gasped. "Oh yes, I knew you were influencing the results. **A Shadow Game reveals one's true nature.** " Preston shouted as he witnessed the pieces in front of him change. They began to look like an actual fox and some geese. The fox growled at the birds. "It's funny. You think you're like the fox. But you have none of its strength, nor its smarts. The bottom of the barrel of foxes, if anything. You are a bully, targeting those that can't fend for themselves. You are a glutton, greedily scrambling for anything you can stuff in your maw. But most importantly of all, when the prey learns how they can outwit… overpower… and outnumber the fox… you show your true colors. You reveal how much of a coward you really are." Preston watched in horror as the geese began transforming again. Their forms grew, towering over him. Before long, they looked far more akin to winged demons than birds. His fox's ears drooped, whimpering. As if it moved on its own, Preston's hand moved the fox back. "And here it is. Your fear and guilt comes to light. These… "geese" are all those you and your family have stepped on. For so long they have been at the Northwests' mercy. But when they grow bigger than you, when they band together, you can crush them under your heel no longer. And you realize the truth about yourself." Preston found himself on the board itself, the much larger fox standing in front of him. He had no time to process this, as the demons stepped forward. He and his fox stepped back. "You are not a king, but a common thief." Step. "You live in luxury, but will never be satisfied." Step. "And in spite of all those who had come to revel in your success," Step. "Even with so many people surrounding you, adoring you…" Step. "When you need people to help you the most…" Preston nearly lost his footing, realizing he was at the edge of the board. **You are alone.**

"What… are you?" 

Yugi appeared right in front of him, emerging from the floor. He got very close to Preston's face, his eyes piercing through him. Preston moved back, trying his best not to fall off. Yugi's smiled; his eyes seemed as if they contained fire. He laughed, and Preston felt he was going to go insane. " **I am…** the winner." 

"Preston! Preston! What are you doing?!" 

"Huh?! Wha-?!" Preston flailed around at the sound of his wife's yelling, shocked to find the entire room back to normal. No demons, no animals, no shadows. He grasped at his sweaty forehead as if it had all been a bad dream. 

"Preston, what on earth happened?! You had him on the run, but then you just started moving your piece towards yourself! It's as if you wanted him to trap you!" 

"Priscilla, what in god's name are you-" He cut himself off as he witnessed the board. His fox, surrounded in all possible paths by unblockable geese. He had lost. "That's… that's impossible. My mind. YOU MESSED WITH MY MIND!" 

"We played a shadow game, Preston. Where one must not only focus on the game but take care not to be consumed by the shadows themselves. You couldn't, thus you could no longer think clearly. Your body moved based on your fear rather than coherent thought." 

"What?!" 

"When you realized I wasn't some hapless fool who knew nothing about the game, your confidence and will cracked, allowing the shadows to take over. All that bravado thinking you were superior to me, only for it to crumble so easily… your fragile ego led you to lose." Preston clenched his fists. "And since you lost, you and your wife will turn yourself in, release custody of your daughter, and give over all your assets to her." 

"Like hell… you think you can just cheat me like that? Preston Northwest?!" He tore a trophy rapier from the wall. "I'll show you what happens when you try to take my wealth away from me!" He lunged for Yugi." 

" **I knew you couldn't play by the rules.** " Yugi stated. A golden eye shined from his forehead, blinding Preston. " **The gate of darkness has opened. You will suffer a penalty.** " 

The fox piece transformed back into a fox, pouncing on Preston with great ferocity. It growled, its mangled teeth dripping drool as it stared at him. This time Pacifica and Priscilla could see it too. 

"You have shown just how despicable your soul really is. The only thing that would dare even touch it is a desperate and hungry creature… and your fox has most certainly mirrored that from you. It will feast on your soul, destroying it." As it bared its teeth, ready to lunge, Preston could only cover his eyes and hope that things ended quickly. 

"STOP!" 

Yugi and the fox paused, staring at Pacifica in confusion. "So this is it, huh? You're really going to stoop to his level?" 

"I would think you would be supportive of this." 

"Yeah, you would think so. But despite how much I hate them… I already told myself I wasn't going to be like them. Not anymore. And standing by, watching as some idiot gets his soul devoured? That's something that would make me feel like them." She gestured to her father. "This man and his wife have tried to control my life, to keep me from being anything more than another member of a cruel legacy. And I want to get back at them for it. But I'm going to do that by living. Living my life the way I want to. Not by taking theirs as retribution." 

Yugi stared at her, no emotion on his face. "That's… big of you, Pacifica." He looked to be thinking on her words but shook off the thoughts. "Even still, Preston must face what he's done." 

"Oh, really? And when you've destroyed this guy's soul, how are you going to feel afterward? I heard your friends. They said this wasn't who you are. And I'm inclined to believe them." 

Yugi jolted again. He forced his eyes shut. _"She's… she's right. This isn't me. It's just the shadow magic!"_

However, Yugi's thoughts soon changed. **_But it could be me. If I let this slide, I'll return all the pain he's inflicted on others. Every wrong he's committed will be answered for."_**

Pacifica watched as he conflicted with himself. "Come on, Yugi. I know I've only known you for a few hours, but I could at least tell you and your friends were close. Anyone with a brain could. If they were so adamant about you not being this kind of person, would they really want you to go through with this?" 

_"No… they wouldn't. I don't know if I could ever look them in the eyes again. Jonouchi, Honda… Anzu…"_

"But… but then again, Anzu stopped me from trying to help her. That guy was going to… I was just trying to protect her and anyone else he tried to lay his hands on. My friends keep getting hurt, and the only way to save them is to destroy anybody who tries to harm them." 

Yugi's face had a thousand-yard stare. Pacifica needed just one more thing to snap him out of it. And she knew just the bit of personal advice to do it. "Yugi. Most importantly, above everything else… you need to ask if you can live with yourself if you do this. I wasn't always the nicest person. Even though it can be traced back to my parents, I still did a lot of bad things. Things I can't take back. I remember what I did every now and then and I find it hard to stare at myself in the mirror. Please, Yugi. Would you be able to look at yourself in the mirror if you went through with this?" 

Something in Yugi seemed to click at that point. _"…No… No, I wouldn't! Atem believed I could bring this power under control. He saw something in me that was able to handle this magic. If I go through with this, I won't just disappoint him and all my friends… but myself too. **But… we can't let Preston get away, he has to pay…** No. No, that's the shadows talking. It's influencing my thoughts… It won't go away unless I pacify it… I think I know how to end this."_

The golden glowed brightly again. " **PENALTY GAME!** " 

"No!" Pacifica shouted, before she was interrupted by a tree bursting out in front of her. Preston flinched again as more trees surrounding him. When he unshielded his eyes, he found himself in some unknown dark forest. The trees almost seemed like they could touch the moon. He heard Yugi's voice, realizing the boy had appeared in front of him. 

" **DARK FOREST MANIA!** " 

"Wha-… where am I?" 

"This forest is like a prison. Its darkness covers every inch, preventing anyone from seeing too far ahead. Your soul will wander it indefinitely, unable to find an escape. Until you realize what it is you've lost sight of, you yourself will be lost in the darkness forever." Yugi faded away. 

"W-wait! Come back! You can't just leave me here! WAAAAAIIIIT!" 

From the outside, Preston seemed to be stuck in a trance-like state. Pacifica looked back and forth from Yugi to him, worried about what he had done. 

Yugi's eyes changed back to their usual softness. "He's not dead. I've put him in a situation where he'll be forced to come to terms with himself." He looked to Priscilla, who was now trying to shake Preston awake. "You should take this opportunity as well to rethink how you've lived your life. Odds are, it'll be something you have to focus on for a long while." As Yugi finished, he was hit by a heavy migraine. He fell onto one knee. Pacifica ran over to him. "I'm… I'm sorry, Pacifica… I wish you'd never seen me like that. You were right. That wasn't me… To think I almost destroyed someone again…" 

Pacifica gave a small smile. "Hey, we pulled through, didn't we? Besides, giving my dad a reality check was pretty cool, at least." 

Yugi smirked back, but it quickly turned back into a frown. "Pacifica… how well you've taken all our strange quirks… your bravery in jumping into scary situations… it really makes me cuious. And also concerned… Just who is this 'Bill' person you thought I was?" 

Pacifica grimaced. "He's not a person." 

"Well… what is he then?" 

"He's dead, that's what. It was silly for me to think he was back. Honestly, if life is at least somewhat fair, you'll never find out. So don't worry about it." 

Yugi wasn't all that relieved by her words. But before he could press on, the door flung open. At first, Pacifica and Yugi were expecting it to be their friends. Instead, it turned out to be all of Whimsley's security, barreling into the room. As they surrounded Preston, the head of the squad came forward, putting his hand on the man's shoulder. "Mr. Northwest, we're gonna have to ask you to come with us. 

Pacifica got a little nervous. Her dad was probably going to drool and keel over in response, and that might complicate things. To her surprise however, he actually spoke. "Yes. Of course. Lead the way." His voice was almost monotone. 

Priscilla was in shock. "Preston? Preston, you can't be serious!" Another guard came up to her. 

"We're going to have to ask that you come with us too, ma'am." She reluctantly complied. 

"I thought he was in a trance." She whispered to Yugi. 

Yugi replied. "He is, but his mind is on autopilot. The shadow magic will make him hold up his end of the deal." 

The guards came to the two young adults. "Miss Pacifica, I believe your friends are waiting for you. You sir, on the other hand, will need to come with us for questioning." Before he could take Yugi, Pacifica stood in front of him. 

"I can tell you what happened." She said. "Please sir, Yugi's just as much of a victim as I am in this." It wasn't a total lie. 

The guard sighed. "Listen, miss, I know I probably shouldn't tell you about this, but we got really crazy readings that made the whole island's security measures go nuts. We need to make sure to question everyone about this." 

"It was my dad. Yugi only came in to help me out of my 'episode'. My dad chose to take his anger out on him, and they got into a fight. That's when he decided to use some magical weird thing he brought from home. It backfired on him though." 

"Hmm… That… only makes me hella more suspicious." Pacifica realized it wasn't one of her best explanations. The guard crossed his arms. "Look, can I just take him? Otherwise, I have to take you in too on suspicion, and that makes both our nights longer." That statement gave Pacifica an idea. 

"Then how about we make both our nights shorter? My dad's already being taken in, probably for child abuse… who's to say we can't just add something to the list? After all, if this guy right here is just an innocent bystander, that would mean you only have to process two people, right? Not as much paperwork. Plus, my family is from Gravity Falls. The place with all the weird stories? Who's to say he didn't get a magical artifact of some kind?" 

"Uh… I mean…" 

His partners were buying into it. "If we take him in too… we'll miss the party over at C Block. But only two people, and we just might make it back in time for Frank to bring out the strong stuff." The woman said. 

The guy continued. "I'd rather be stuck with a hangover tomorrow morning after a crazy night, then tired as hell after an entirely boring one." 

That seemed to do it. "Alright, you've convinced me. But I'm writing down what you've said as a being a witness, okay?" Pacifica nodded in response. 

Yugi raised an eyebrow as they walked away. "I don't mean to sound judgy, but that wasn't the most honest of approaches." 

"Hey, my dad did that kind of stuff for selfish reasons. I did it because I wanted to help someone else. That's not Preston level, that's Stan level." 

Yugi gave her a funny look. _"Not sure if I want to meet this "Stan"."_

"Yugi!" Before he could realize it was Anzu shouting for him, he was pulled into a very tight hug. "I'm sorry. I was supposed to help you, but I couldn't-"

"It's my fault, Anzu. I should've told them from the beginning. Before the island, even."

"But I had to tell everyone, not just Jonouchi and Honda. I-"

"It's okay. Besides, Pacifica managed to talk some sense into me."

"Hey, mind loosening your grip, Anzu? Some of us also wanna strangle the guy with friendship." Jonouchi said, right beside them. Honda had moved in on the other side.

"Jonouchi… Honda… I'm sorry, I-"

Honda gave him a small shake on the shoulder. "Hey, enough feeling sorry for ourselves. You're still our friend, so let's stop moping, alright? Why don't you just start from the beginning…"

Pacifica decided to give them some space for now and walked away. Ben was there to greet her outside the door. "Well, I've had hectic nights before, but that one was certainly unique. You okay?"

"Thanks to Yugi. And I couldn't have helped him in return if it weren't for you guys."

"You can thank Billy for that. Without him, we might have never found the room y'all were in."

"Is that so?" Pacifica turned to the pint-sized billionaire, who immediately became two hundred percent more flustered. "Thank you, Billy. You've really done a lot for me tonight. I couldn't ask for a better friend."

"Ah, well, you know… that's me, great friend dude… I mean, the dude who's a great friend, uh-" He immediately shut up when Pacifica gave him a hug. When she released him, he looked so red he might melt.

"Rich boy has stopped functioning. I repeat, rich boy has stopped functioning." Julie said.

Ben smiled back at her. "Copy that."

Rook chuckled. "It reminds me of a farmer's daughter I had an infatuation with, back when I still had my bi'nthak."

Ben laughed at that. "I think we all had our first hopeless puppy love crushes at some point."

"I don't want to hear it, Samantha! We told you to stay out of trouble!"

"It wasn't on purpose! Trouble just sort of found me, okay!"

Pacifica watched as Sam was fighting with two adults. Judging by how the conversation was going, these folks were her parents. Danny was standing off to the side, rubbing the back of his head nervously. Pacifica walked over, hoping she could clear some things up. Sam shouldn't have to take any kind of fall for this.

"Excuse me," They turned to her. "But are you Sam's parents?"

Sam's father asked. "Why yes. May I ask, who are you?"

"Pacifica Northwest."

Both Mansons guffawed. "Northwest?! As in, Preston Northwest?!"

"Uh, yeah…" At least he knew her father. Maybe she could influence him to let Sam off easy.

Instead, he pulled his daughter closer. "That pompous jerk?! I don't care how high and mighty you think you are, if you're anything like him, if you've said anything to my daughter-"

Okay, she wasn't expecting that. "Wait, you hate my dad?"

"Hate him?! Pamela and I loathe his guts! That windbag always bragged about how "his daddy could buy and sell us", and how he was going to put the Northwest name on top of the world. He never missed an opportunity to try and embarrass me. And he would always go on and on, bragging about how many people he and his family tricked and swindled!"

Pamela growled. "He tried to woo me numerous times, but the only thing he ever talked about was himself. When I ended up marrying Jeremy instead, he went and won a wife from a yachting competition. Who even still does things like that these days? I even had the displeasure of meeting that airhead fishface." Sam was looking at her parents, stunned. They never spoke like this before. Pamela quickly turned and snapped at Pacifica. "What are you here for? Come to continue the tradition with my daughter? I won't have it." Both she and Sam's dad scowled at her.

"Whoa, whoa! Mom, Dad, stop!" Sam pulled out of Jeremy's arms. "Pacifica isn't like either of her parents. She's honestly really cool. Look, what you guys were getting on my case for? With the Clarabelle girl? Pacifica and I were the good guys. Clarabelle's the one who started it."

"I can vouch for her." Pacifica confirmed. "The girl and her two cronies dumped an entire bowl of punch on her. They were the ones who started things. I chased them off and helped Sam get cleaned up. She wasn't trying to start trouble."

The Mansons looked at her strangely. "A Northwest helping someone out of the goodness in their heart? I find that hard to believe."

"Trust me, Dad. The apple falls far from the tree. In fact, she…" Sam stopped, looking at Pacifica. "Can… can I tell them?"

Pacifica instantly knew what she was talking about. "Go ahead. I trust you."

Sam nodded, before pulling her parents down and whispering into their ears. Their faces soon changed from scowling to appalled.

"Oh my goodness…" Pamela covered her mouth with her hand.

"I always knew Preston was awful, but I didn't think he was such a sick bastard." Jeremy shook his head. "You really helped my daughter? And you're sure Miss Clarabelle was the aggravator?"

"On my life, I'm not lying to you." She looked straight into his eyes.

Jeremy sighed, and it finally dawned on him how quick he was to think of his own daughter as the aggressor. "I'm sorry, Sam. It was wrong for us to assume that you started such an incident."

Pamela placed a hand on Sam's shoulder. "We'll have a word with Clarabelle's parents. We know them, and they are far more reasonable people than you might think." Sam only turned her head away, and her parents frowned sadly. Yet again, something else that seemed to push their daughter away from them.

Still, Jeremy knew he could at least do something to make it up to her. "Pacifica, as I understand, your parents will not be able to take care of you for the rest of the week… and likely forever after that. But in any case, you can stay with us if you like. It might be a bit crowded, but it's the least we can do after what you've done for our daughter."

"Excuse me, Pacifica?" Pacifica was interrupted before she could even answer. Adding to the list of surprises, Horace Whimsley himself was there to greet her. "Could I talk with you for a moment?"

She looked back at the Mansons. "I'll uh, get back to you in a sec."

The two walked away, to have a private conversation. "I must greatly apologize. My security nearly mucked up this entire situation, and you almost paid for it."

Pacifica shook her head. "It's fine. Luckily, I had some good friends to help me out."

"About that. Considering that my island is like its own sovereign nation, transferring your father and mother from here back to the States to be brought to court has caused some complications. You see, some of our other guests have come forward and accused him of stealing, thus things have become far more complicated. They are obviously not fit to take care of you, one way or another. But we would rather not put you through an international tabloid incident while the charity event has only just started. I was hoping someone here could take care of you. But while your friends are good people, none of them are necessarily certified to be taking care of you." He gestured back to them. "Mature they may be, but they are still teens and young adults. And because you are below the age of eighteen, you are legally still a child. As we are both from the States, I am only confident in you staying with an adult who has experience raising children. Otherwise, I will need to ask you to stay in the under my supervision for the time being."

Pacifica nodded, understanding the worry. "The Mansons offered to take care of me."

"A better option by far, but I am worried by their shaky relationship with their own daughter, as well as their uninvited guest. Do you know anyone else? Otherwise, I'd say it would be best to stay in my company until then."

While Pacifica understood he had a point, and that it might sit easier with the authorities if she was actually under care by a parent, she wasn't keen on staying with Whimsley. But if the Mansons couldn't take care of her, who else could? She could say Stan or Soos, but uh… neither of them probably fitted official parameters. Or anyone from Gravity Falls, really. 'Sorry Dipper, Mabel. Might not be coming back just yet.' Other than them, Yugi and his friends, Ben's group and Billy, there wasn't anyone else who…!

"What about Bruce Wayne?"

"Bruce Wayne? He does have experience with adopting, but I'm afraid…"

"I've already met him earlier this evening. He even gave me a therapy card." She took it out. "He wouldn't be against watching me for a little bit, right?"

"Honestly, Pacifica, I would prefer keeping a closer eye on you after all the stress you've been through. It would also be a little less on Mr. Wayne's shoulders-"

"You shouldn't worry so much about me." Whimsley and Pacifica were shocked to find Bruce Wayne already there. "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I was merely checking on the group that was so concerned with Pacifica's safety. If she needs a place to stay though, I can offer that. After what she's been through tonight, how could I not?"

"Mr. Wayne, I simply couldn't ask you to deal with something like.'

"You say that as if it's a burden. Really, Mr. Whimsley, I insist."

"But I would rather make sure she is alright myself-"

"She would do far better with someone she's familiar with, especially when she barely knows you. I appreciate your concern, Whimsley, but I can take care of her."

Pacifica smiled. "Thanks, Mr. Wayne. I know things like this should probably be resolved sooner rather than later, but I need some time to process this. With my dad being arrested, I'm not going to be living with them anymore, and I think I'm going to be inheriting their fortune…" She actually knew for sure she was but left that tidbit out. "It's a lot of stuff I don't want to think about just yet. Besides, you're the only one I've met tonight I haven't gotten the chance to know."

"I understand. I'll let Alfred know we're going to have a guest staying with us. Why don't you go back to your friends? Spend some more time with them before the night is over." Pacifica nodded again, running off to see them. Bruce turned back to Whimsley with a frown. "What in the hell is the matter with you Whimsley? She was clearly getting uncomfortable with your insistence."

"Well, excuse me, Mr. Wayne. I simply wanted to ensure the opposite."

"Not to mention, the case on Preston should start to be handled immediately. Not delayed."

"As I said, I'm only trying to make things comfortable for the girl. She's been through enough as it is. We'll make sure he is brought to justice."

"Mmhmm." He walked away, obviously unsatisfied with the man's explanation. With Vlad's group foiled for now, and Preston in custody, Bruce knew that while he was still here, he had to find out what Whimsley was hiding.

* * *

"Kaiba!" Kaiba wasn't surprised when Pacifica came running up to him. She had checked up on every other clique in this little "herd", so it was only a matter of time before she found him. "I… I want to thank you. Ben just told me that you also helped out in searching for me."

"Things were going to get noisier if this incident persisted. I preferred that it wouldn't."

"Don't we all?" She laughed. "Even still, I feel like have to apologize that you always have to deal with my noise, so…"

"Pacifica." She stared at Kaiba, who was now looking at her straight in the eye. Apologize? For facing such adversity and coming out on top? And lose every ounce of dignity she had? He had to set her straight. Not that it mattered, he simply didn't want to have to deal with her turning spineless. That was all.

"Life is at its core, a game. A harsh game where you can win or lose anything at any time. Above all else, it gives you one chip to win that game with… the chip of life. Some would think that means you have to protect it at all costs, to never risk it at all… but that isn't the truth. To truly come out on top in this long, twisted game, one has to be willing to bet their chip of life on their most important moves and crucial pieces. Your father thought he could bet your chip of life as he saw fit. He was never willing to risk his own chip on his goals, his winning strategy. And in trying to protect his chip of life, he only ended up losing it on someone else's terms. Meanwhile, you've adapted to every blow thrown your way, gambled your chip in all the right ways, and have come out on top. I only provided the game between you and that idiot suitor. You were the one who crushed him. I helped this group find you quicker, but you were the one who managed to stop Yugi. Not them. An impressive feat on its own. If you say sorry to me now, just for having the will to take victory in your grasp, you throw away your self-respect pointlessly. Don't ever apologize for having the resolve to win."

The others' attention had been drawn to the speech as well. Yugi and his friends, finally having emerged from the room, only sweat-dropped at Kaiba's usual demeanor. Ben and his friends looked on in confusion, while Billy smiled in agreement (though he didn't get it as much as he thought he did). Sam could only give another scowl, not buying any of it, while Danny made sure to "hold her back". But Pacifica? She stared at him in awe, sparkles in her eyes. "Okay."

Bruce cleared his throat. "If all of you have recovered, Mr. Whimsley is going to be making a speech tonight before the night ends. Shall we head back to the ballroom?"

Everyone followed him, most of them just wanting this night to wrap. Kaiba realized that he had missed his opportunity to tell Whimsley off, but it didn't bother him oddly. Perhaps it was because there was finally an interesting reason to stay on this island.

* * *

"So. How did it go?"

"Exactly as I thought. Vlad completely screwed things by inviting that idiot and couldn't even keep him under control."

"That fool. Always setting his sights so low. And Batman?"

"It's obvious he's on the island. Security here is garbage. And Deadshot told me that the Powerpuffs were coincidentally alert and around, very soon after our meeting took place. It doesn't take a genius to know he was listening in on us. I already have contingencies in place to combat any "evidence" they have on me."

"Good. And the compound?"

"I told those buffoons it was "safe in one of my facilities". Then I pretended to take the operation over by force. The compound should actually be on its way with Deathstroke. And the tests involving Chemical X by itself were all very enlightening."

"Excellent. You've truly proved your progress. The Light is impressed."

"Thank you, Mr. Luthor. But I could never have made it this far without you."

"Ah, but you've taken my teachings and exceeded where your fellow students have failed. That is why you are being considered to join the inner circle, so soon after you've joined. And please, you may call me Lex when we're alone, Princess."

Princess's heart went aflutter. Where her "daddy" had stagnated her growth, Lex had been like a true father to her, pushing her to realize her greater potential. She wasn't a Chemical X freak, she was something even greater. Human. That was why she was a step ahead of the Powerpuffs now. Why she no more desired to be something she wasn't, instead of herself. Why she was going to stand atop their corpses when The Light conquered this world.

"Return when you please. You've deserved that vacation."

"Thank you, Lex. But I think I'll also be taking care of business, not just pleasure." Her tone darkened. "Whimsley is even more suspicious than we thought."

"If he proves to be an obstacle to the light, instead of an asset… end him."

"Of course."

* * *

"Ladies and Gentlemen! I'm honored that you were all able to make it tonight."

Whimsley spoke before a crowd of all the island's guests, a spotlight shining on him.

"Now I know that people have been talking of some troubling rumors, but not to worry! Everything is fine and taken care of! I can assure you no other problems will occur on the island!"

Princess had rejoined Vlad and Fist, who only glared at her.

"Let us leave behind our worries and focus having a good time! As well as the people we shall help through the charity itself!"

Preston was back in a holding facility. His eye twitched slightly.

"This first day has been a blast, and I can tell you the coming week will be even greater!"

Pacifica and her newfound friends sat together, enjoying some non-alcoholic cider.

"Let us all make a toast! To what will truly be an eventful spring break!"

* * *

As the last few guests left, Whimsley remained in the lobby for a little bit longer. When he was sure there were no stragglers, he left. Heading for his quarters, he told his servants not to disturb him for any reason.

Entering his room, soundproofed and rather bare, he felt his stomach become uneasy. He spoke. "Did… did I do well, Master?"

"YOU DID ADEQUATE." A robotic voice answered back. A shiver went up his spine. "WE COLLECTED QUITE A SURPLUS OF DATA. BUT YOU HAVE HANDLED THE EVENTS OF TONIGHT IN A LESS THAN STELLAR WAY."

"I apologize, master. But it's hard to keep everyone on the island without doing it in a suspicious way. Perhaps if we actually had proper security-" He felt pressure around his neck.

"YOU DARE QUESTION ME?"

"No! No!" He choked. "I'm sorry, master, I meant no disrespect! Please do not replace me!"

The grip on his throat released, and he fell to his knees. "THE NATURE OF THE ISLAND NOT ONLY ATTRACTS VILLAINS, BUT HEROES AS WELL. WE MAKE IT SEEM ENTICING TO BOTH SIDES, TO COLLECT MAGICAL DATA. BUT NONE OF IT IS ANY I HAVEN'T SEEN BEFORE. DISAPPOINTING. WHICH IS WHY WE INVITE THE NOT-SO-SUPER AS WELL. AND JOYOUS DAY, WE HAVE FOUND MUCH INTERESTING RESULTS. IN PARTICULAR, I AM INTERESTED IN THIS DARK MAGIC SURROUNDING THE SPIKY HAIRED BOY. BUT ONE STOOD ABOVE ALL THE REST. THE BLONDE GIRL."

"Pa… Pacifica Northwest, master?" He asked.

"YOU CONVINCING HER TO STAY, EVEN IF YOU WERE UNABLE TO OBTAIN TEMPORARY CUSTODY OF HER, IS THE ONLY REASON I HAVEN'T KILLED YOU, DESPITE YOUR MISTAKES. THE ENERGY REMNANTS SURROUNDING HER… IT IS EVEN GREATER THAN MAGIC. WE SHALL KEEP A CLOSE EYE ON HER FROM THIS POINT ON." A small green worm began wriggling out of Whimsley's collar. "THESE HEROES AND VILLAINS… THEY COME TO THE ISLAND THINKING THAT THERE IS SOMETHING BIGGER AT PLAY. ONLY TO FIND YOU, AND BE DISAPPOINTED. NEVER DO THEY THINK TO LOOK FOR SOMETHING SMALLER…" The worm freed himself. His body appeared as a caterpillar. His eyes were like that of a mantis. His mandibles were more fit to be an ant's. And there was a small device at the center of his body, that flashed every time he spoke.

**"NEVER DO THEY THINK TO LOOK FOR MISTER MIND."**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that essentially marks the end of part one. I noted in the original story on fanfiction.net that the next days would not take nearly as many chapters as the first night, so expect the coming week to be shorter in a sense. However, next time, we have an interlude before we move on.


	10. Meanwhile, Somewhere in the Woods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pacifica's first night on the island resort has ended, and with it, her woes (she hopes). Elsewhere, way up north, we check in on the people she left behind. Mabel and Dipper have arrived at the Mystery Shack, but one twin isn't as happy as he usually is. His family and friends determine to get to the bottom of his strange behavior, until it all falls down to Mabel. But as the Pines twins come to find out, it could have everything to do with the famous phrase- "Absence makes the heart grow fonder".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a slight interlude before we move on. Chapter 11 picks back up on the next day on the resort.

Contrasting heavily from a tropical island resort off the coast of Mexico, the sleepy town of Gravity Falls was a rainy, muddy miserable mess. The magical creatures of the land had hidden in shelters of all kinds, and the people were just as scarce.

The Mystery Shack found itself as the haven for the Pines, as it always did, though Wendy and the Ramirez' also found themselves avoiding the elements within the shack. Things inside were quiet as all residents had been busying themselves with various things.

Stan was watching television, in his "evening clothes". He had found an awful 2000s reboot of "The Duchess Approves" that had taken a few artistic liberties (He was riffing it like crazy). Stan and his brother had made it a case to take a break from their boating journey and come back to the Falls whenever the kids visited. He had been hoping to see his grandniece and nephew and have a great time. However, today hadn't gone as he hoped. When Dipper and Mabel arrived, Mabel had acted as expected. But Dipper lifelessly went up to his room and stayed there all day.

Ford was in his lab, which had been re-purposed over the years. He was looking at the latest discovery of his and Stan's adventure, in deep thought of the day's events. He had thought that Dipper would be excited to know of this anomaly. To his shock, the boy barely acknowledged it. It was completely unlike him.

Soos and Melody were finishing up the day's work, taking inventory and counting money. While the spring break had started off pretty good, today had ended on a sour note. Soos wished he could do something to snap Dipper out of… whatever this was, but his buddy wasn't responding to much.

Wendy, like the Stans, had made it a habit of coming back every summer from college, but springs were also in her ballpark. After all, two of the coolest kids she'd ever known would be waiting for her. Unfortunately, Dipper had arrived not talking to anyone. None of her young adult wisdom seemed to get through to him either. For now, she was stuck whittling… something, as she thought about what any of them could do.

Dipper's behavior affected Mabel by extent, as she sat downstairs engorging a big tub of sherbet. At first, she thought the both of them were just disappointed about Pacifica. But the moment Dipper ignored everyone (even Mabel) and shut himself in his room, the twin knew something was wrong. With him not responding to anybody, even her, she could only sulk as he did.

The "man of the hour" was currently on his bed in deep thought. He lay there, sad in a way he hadn't been before. All he could do was wonder why.

Back down with Mabel, her Grunkle decided to check in on her. "Hey, Pumpkin." Stan greeted as he entered the kitchen. "Figuring out what's at the bottom of that tub?"

"Mmhmm." She sullenly said.

"Yeah. Mood's kind of down all around. Probably all originating from Dipper. Like a… like a radiation leak of sadness."

"Yeah…"

"Hrrr… I think it's time we find out what's got him so bothered. Hold on…" He stomped his foot on the ground a few times. "Alright, everyone! Group meeting! That means you too, Ford!"

One by one, everyone shuffled into the room. Once everyone had arrived, Stan started off.

"Okay, so Dipper's been down in dumps all day. So down, that he's become a mute recluse. Won't talk to anyone, and heck, not sure if he can hear anyone. Now I understand the whole shpeal, give the guy some space and maybe he'll come to us, but I think we should start brainstorming to see if find a way to coax it out of him. Cause he's starting to worry me. Now, usually I'd just have this sitcom-style sit-down consisting of some moral or life lesson, but that's unable to be initiated at the moment. And the only other way I know of getting information out of people are ones I learned the various prisons I've been to, which… yeah, definitely not an option."

Ford pondered. "I've already tried suggesting a game of Dungeons, Dungeons and more Dungeons to make him more comfortable, but he brushed it off, saying he wasn't in the mood. That on top of being disinterested in what Stan and I recently discovered… well, I don't really know how else I could connect to him."

"You said you think it had something to do with Pacifica, right?" Wendy asked.

Mabel nodded. "Yeah. He's been like this ever since she called us. Except it doesn't explain… this. Sure, we never like how her dad treats her. And like Dipper said himself, she shouldn't have to put up with his crap. But we have to trust that she'll make it through being alone with her parents, and it's not like we'll never see her again."

"Maybe he's just angry that he wasn't able to help. Y'know, feeling bad cause he feels useless?" Wendy suggested.

"Maybe. But again, I felt that too, and there were a few times we couldn't help her in the last few years. He was never like this after those times."

Soos had a different idea. "Maybe it's something supernatural. Like a ghost of bus stops possessed him."

"That's silly, Soos." Mabel handwaved. "Dipper already exorcised all of the bus stop ghosts, remember?"

"Oh yeah."

"Maybe it was something he ate?" Melody asked. Everyone looked at her. "Uh, sorry… y'all took all the good ones."

Soos shook his head. "No, no. Your suggestion was odd for our standards, but probable nonetheless."

Wendy agreed. "Yeah. I mean, all the weird stuff here and a regular stomachache is what caused this? It's one heck of a shake-up."

"Maybe it was a combination of the supernatural and sickness. And other terrifying S-words!" Soos trembled. "Gasp! What if my names attracted this affliction because of its two S's? I've doomed Dipper!"

"Okay, easy there, big guy. That's a little much." Wendy said while Melody rubbed his shoulder.

Stan stroked his chin. "Well, it's gotta be something. Keep thinking, people."

* * *

While the group continued to converse, brainstorming for possible answers, Dipper had been dwelling on his thoughts.

__

_Last Summer…_

 _"So… is it like, dead?" Pacifica asked, peering out from a nearby rock. Dipper looked at the gooey creature, its odd crab legs folded._

_"No. It's just asleep. Ford told me these things are smarter than they look, but they still have a soft spot for food. A few drugs in some bait, an voila. It won't be down for long… but it's long enough to move it into a suitable habitat, away from the town. There's a nearby nest that will take it in."_

_"What? We're not killing it?"_

_"These things only eat plants and would rather leave people alone than go out attacking humans. It was probably captured for the monster market beneath the town. After it escaped, it must've been terrified. In a place full of strange creatures and noises, not sure where to go, nothing it could call for help on…"_

_"Well… if that's the case, wouldn't it be cautious enough not to eat random food it finds?"_

_"Oh come on, why would it turn down food? It's probably starving-" As Dipper approached the creature, the thing suddenly flipped over, lunging at Dipper. Before he could react, it had him pinned against the wall._

_"DIPPER!" Pacifica shouted. The creature hissed at the boy, before running off. Pacifica ran over to the fallen boy, helping him up. "Are you okay?"_

_"Well… my ego's been bruised, but I'm okay otherwise." He looked in the direction the creature escaped to. He sighed. "Looks like I'm an idiot. Of course, it would still be cautious. Sure, it has a soft spot for food, but not in an unfamiliar environment when it feels like it's in imminent danger. I'm lucky it didn't take off my head…" He kicked a nearby can in frustration._

_"Hey, we haven't failed yet. Er, not entirely, anyway. We can still get that thing back home."_

_"But I'm out of ideas. I've tried everything Ford told me, and it keeps getting away."_

_"Have you tried talking to it?"_

_"Huh?"_

_"Y'know, talking to it. You said they were like, super smart, right? What if we let it know we're trying to help? Maybe it'll calm down."_

_"You really think that'll work?"_

_"I mean… I would want a friend if I was alone and scared. Which I was, remember? When my family lost money, I was stuck in a very unforgiving town. The kids at school were vicious, the townspeople ignored me since I wasn't all that popular anymore… it was awful. I felt scared. Lost. Alone. Until you guys came the next summer. But I never came to you for help. I just showed my bad side, cause I felt too afraid to open up. Because even though I was too scared to reach out… I needed a friend regardless. When you two kept hanging out with me despite my bad attitude, I eventually got the memo. I relaxed." Dipper's eyes widened. Pacifica smiled at him in conformation as he finally connected the pieces. "If we really show it that we don't want to hurt it, it'll open up to us eventually."_

_Dipper rubbed his head. "Still, it's gonna be hard to prove to it that we wanna help. Especially after all the tricks I pulled on it."_

_"Then that gives us all the more reason to start now, right?"_

_Dipper smiled at her and nodded determinedly._

_It took till the end of summer, but the two had finally managed to get through to the creature. Every day after that incident, they would find it and tried their best to warm up to it. At first, they left food and would leave soon after. When they noticed the creature would come out to watch them as they left food, they kept their distance but stayed in the open where it could see them. The creature would hurriedly take the food and rush back to its spot. Eventually, it started to relax around them, not being so quick. One day, the creature approached them slowly. It allowed Pacifica to feed it, but still hissed at Dipper, remembering him. It was another week before it would actually eat from the boy's hands. At that point, the creature started eating on the spot, even resting close to them. Dipper and Pacifica started spending longer periods of time near it, allowing it to become used to their presence. When it finally trusted Pacifica, it allowed her to scratch the top of its head. Dipper was once again delayed for a few days, but it eventually dropped its grudge and let him scratch it too. By the time the end of the summer had come, they were able to coax it into getting in a car, driving it into the outskirts of the town._

_Which is where they found themselves now, watching Crabby (as they came to call him) scuttle into his new hive. He was accepted almost instantly, finally closing the book on this adventure._

_"You know, even though he was slimy and ruined three of my outfits, I'm going to kind of miss him." Pacifica said._

_"Oh, come on, you loved him. I just wish we hadn't named him. Now I feel sad to see him go." Dipper said, some tears in his eyes._

_"The name thing was your idea. No one to blame but yourself there." However, her eyes were watery as well._

_"But he's not the only one who's going to be leaving." Dipper noted. Pacifica frowned. The two made their way back up the path, leading into town. "It's just a few days before I head back home. I don't know what it is about this time, but… I'm even less ready to leave than usual."_

_"Hey, don't feel so down. You'll always be back for the summer, right?"_

_"Of course. This place might as well be my home. If Mabel and I could convince Mom and Dad to move here, we would."_

_"Then I'll be able to see you then, right? No need to worry. Plus, we can always talk on the phone." Well, Mabel's phone, anyway. They had to have a serious talk about phones at some point._

_"I know, I just… it doesn't make the wait any less agonizing. But also… I'm worried about you. With your dad making more money all of the sudden and cracking down on security… if it weren't for all of Ford's gadgets and all the Falls weirdness we own, you'd never be able to come and spend time with us, much less help Crabby. And now we're leaving you behind with him."_

_"Your Grunkles and Wendy will be here every now and then. And Soos, Wendy, Candy, and Grenda will be here all the time. I'll be fine. I can handle him and his crap."_

_"I know. It's just… he really doesn't understand how great you are. He only sees you as a thing to show off, even though you're so much more than that. You're…"_

_"Smart, creative and confident?" Pacifica said, repeating a phrase he had once said to her in a burlap sack._

_Dipper gave a weak chuckle. "Yeah. And you… you deserve so much more than to be treated like a trophy."_

_Pacifica smiled at him, before suddenly embracing. "Then it's a good thing I have someone who sees the best things in me." Dipper returned the embrace. Neither moved, standing there for a while before they noticed how long they'd been hugging. They pushed apart, flustered._

_"I, uh… suppose this is where you pay me to pretend that didn't happen?" Dipper joked._

_Pacifica blushed. "Heh…" Suddenly, her face lightened, as if she got an idea. "Say… what if you and Mabel came during the spring?"_

_"The spring?"_

_"Yeah. Sure, you guys always come during the summer. And your parents want you at home during the winter, for Christmas. But would they mind you coming in spring?" She asked, then looked into his eyes._

_Dipper slowly smiled. "Did I ever tell you that you have the greatest ideas?"_

_Pacifica smirked. "You could stand to say it more."_

It was a wonder she was ever related to Preston, considering all the bad ideas the man had. Especially when he decided to ruin the spring break for everyone by taking Pacifica away.

But that wasn't true, was it? He realized that everyone else had been ready to move on with their week. Sure, no one was fine with it. Preston was an idiot, but he was an idiot with an emotional trigger. Pacifica had learned how to handle that kind of trauma, but it wasn't guaranteed she would always be prepared for it. However, there wasn't much they could do. The Falls' weirdness could help them with a prison break within the town, but Pacifica was on an island around sixteen hundred miles away. At this point, they could only really trust that Pacifica could take care of herself.

But for some reason, Dipper just felt pain. A pain in his chest like he hadn't before. A churning in his stomach that bothered him every second. It baffled and distressed him. He didn't know how to process this feeling. Sure, he was extremely excited to see her this week, but it couldn't have been that disappointing, right?

It had reached a point where he was sick of it. He didn't want to talk about it or even think about it. He just wanted to make that feeling go away. He was too young to drink, so eating away his troubles seemed like the next best thing.

Shuffling downstairs, he could hear his friends and family talking in the kitchen, likely about him. They all quieted pretty quickly when he entered.

Dipper paused for a moment and the group stared at him awkwardly. Saying nothing, he shuffled past them. He didn't see Wendy reach for him in concern, only for Mabel to stop her. The girl started pushing them out, whispering that she wanted to make one final effort herself. She turned to her brother. One more chance to talk it out before she pulled out the nuclear option.

"Dipper, we need to talk."

"No, we don't." He rejected, searching the pantry.

"You're upset. And both of us promised to talk to each other about what was upsetting us. Always."

"I won't be upset in a little bit, so it doesn't matter."

"That'll only be for a little bit."

"Not if I do this right."

"You could break the law and go through Stan's secret drink cabinet. You still wouldn't be doing it right."

"Mabel, I don't need you to nag me on this. Drop it."

Mabel hesitated, considering what she was about to do. What she was about to do was sacrilege, all things considered.

_"Bro-bro?" Five year old Mabel approached her twin, who had hidden in the playground. None of the teachers could get him to come down, so Mabel had brought it upon herself to come for him, sneaking into the playground. He was sobbing so much he didn't even notice his sister. "Mason?"_

_"Go 'way." He blurted out._

_"But if I go, you'd still be sad. Mabey's here to make ya happy again."_

_"You just want to laugh at me too!"_

_"What? Why in the sparkly unicorn world would I laugh at you?"_

_He looked up from his knees, a strange shape on his forehead. *sniff* "Iz this stupid thingie on my head. Mommy and Daddy said it would go 'way soon, but it's been stuck there for a week. The big kids won' stop calling me names… "There goes little dipper! His face is a connect the dots game!" and stupid stuff like that. I'm not coming out till it goes 'way."_

_"But you can't hide here! Just because those big meanies don't get how special you are!"_

_"Specially weird…"_

_"No! You're specially amazing!" She knelt down beside him. "Those stupidheads didn't even get it right. Mommy already told us it was the Big Dipper! Not the little one!"_

_"So?"_

_"So, that means you're a big star! A big star that shines brighter than any of those dumb jerks! They don't even have the lights on in their head!"_

_"The Big Dipper is a group of stars, Mabel." Mason said._

_"Even better! You've got several stars of power!"_

_Mason's eyes began to dry. "You really think so?"_

_"I know so! And if the other kid can't see that, they don't deserve to be your friend!"_

_Mason wiped the last tears from his eyes. "Thanks, Mabey."_

_"No problem, bro-bro! Now let's get out of this playground!"_

_Things didn't get much better. Eventually the other kids his age had joined in on the name calling. By the end of the year, Dipper would always seclude himself from the other kids, reading or playing a Gameboy. His sister was the only one who could get him out of his shell, but even then, he didn't reconnect with other kids._

_That summer, the Pines family had ended up moving across state to Piedmont. During the middle of the trip, Mason decided to bring up something that was on his mind._

_"Daddy? Mommy? Mabel?"_

_Mabel turned to him, while their dad glanced back in the rearview mirror for a moment. His mother answered him. "What is it, sweetie?"_

_"From now on… can you call me "Dipper"?" Mabel tilted her head. His mother turned and gawked at him. His father nearly jerked the steering wheel._

_"Darling, I thought you hated that nickname. Why would you want us to call you that?" She asked in concern._

_"None of the kids back at our old home even called me by my real name after this mark showed up. And it still hasn't gone away. I don't wanna tell kids my name if they're just gonna stop saying it and laugh at me. If they make fun of me for a dumb nickname, then I can't trust em with my mark. If I can't trust em with my mark, then I can't trust them with my real name."_

_"Now hold on a minute, sport." His dad said. "I know things have been tough, and that beauty mark has yet to disappear, but are you sure you want to do this? I don't want you to think so poorly of your real name."_

_"I don't. It's really important to me. That's why I don't wanna tell other kids. Not until I can trust them with it."_

_Mabel looked at her brother in sadness. This past year had really affected him. He still somewhat thought the mark on his forehead was some symbol of shame that people had to look past. She wouldn't have it._

_"Now, son…"_

_"I think we should do it!" Mabel gleefully said._

_Her mother looked at her. "Now Acorn, I know you like to support your brother…"_

_"But Dipper needs to see that his mark is special!" Her mother and brother looked at her in surprise. "Dipper's an awesome name named after a really cool thing! Something you can be proud of, bro-bro! I say we do it, but only if Dipper wears that name with honor." She took a sheriff badge off one of her stuffed animals. "Cause that's what it is! A badge of honor!"_

_Mom's face contorted. "I don't know…"_

_Dad was starting to see the picture. "Maybe Acorn's on to something. If this mark really doesn't go away… then it shouldn't be something our boy is ashamed of."_

_Mom thought about this. "That's right. That Big Dipper is a part of you, sweetie. And every part of you is something you never have condemn, Dipper."_

_Mabel raised a wand she had. "Well then! Per his request, Mason Pines will now be known as "Dipper" Pines, until he says otherwise."_

_Dipper smiled, feeling warm inside. He could always count on his sister in the end. While his mom and dad did have a little trouble adjusting to the name change, his sister made it a point to only say his nickname. And if he could trust her with his biggest secret, he could trust her with any secret._

Which is why Mabel had to remind him of that now before he forgot again.

**_"Mason Aleksander Pines."_ **

Dipper jolted and turned to her. He stared at her in surprise.

"I've kept that name under lock and key for almost eleven years. No matter how mad I was, no matter how distant I felt from you, I've always held true to keeping that secret. I even made the others leave the room, even though they all know your real name by now. That one secret has been a symbol of our relationship ever since we were five. It shows we can trust each other with our biggest secrets and be there to lift each other back up."

Dipper's face softened, looking at her somberly.

"Four years ago, we started to forget that. Our first summer here… we were almost teenagers. We stopped talking about what was making us upset. I wanted to never grow up. You couldn't grow up fast enough. I was jealous of your intelligence. You were jealous of my socialness. I selfishly tried to fulfill my childish "true love" fantasies and stay young. You selfishly tried to impress Wendy and make yourself look older and cooler. Both of us varied on using Gravity Falls weirdness to help us, and neither of us thought about the consequences. You started to trust me less and less. I tried to pretend nothing was wrong. Oh sure, we talked about our "issues of the day" sometimes after a traumatic monster attack or something. But that only ever relieved the tension temporarily. There may have been a tear in reality, but we risked hitting a rift regardless of Weirdmageddon. We almost drifted apart." She walked up to him. "When everything was over and we got back home, we agreed that we should never let things go that far again. And ever since then, I've repeated that name in my head to remind myself that I need to be someone you can trust. No matter what."

Dipper leaned onto the counter, his eyes drifting to the floor.

"I know whatever's bothering you has to do with Pacifica. And if you let that fester, it's gonna cause problems down the line. I can help you through this. You know I can. But I need you to tell me what exactly about this is getting to you."

Dipper wiped his face as if trying to wipe away any vulnerability. But he couldn't deny that he needed to talk about this. He didn't want to, but he had to. And if he couldn't trust his sister with this info… who could he trust?

"You're right. I'm sorry. This whole thing just… hit me pretty hard." Mabel took his hand and led him to the table, so they could sit down. "I know I can trust you, but… I'm not even sure myself what's got me so upset. I've been mulling it around in my head, but I can't seem to find out what it is. I mean… it's just a week, right? One lousy week. Pacifica will be back in the Falls with friends and we'll get to see her in the summer. I just… Arrggh! Why am I so upset by this?!"

"Easy, Dippingsauce. Let's just walk through it, okay? I thought that it was just that you were excited to see Pacifica again. Then you got sad when you couldn't. Wendy thought that you were mad at yourself for not being able to help Pacifica. Soos thought something supernatural had possessed you. Melody thought it just might be a stomachache. Any of that ringing any bells?"

"All of it is." Mabel raised an eyebrow. "I'm sad that I won't be able to see Pacifica after I had planned to. I'm mad at myself for being useless in helping her. I feel like my chest is being stabbed, but I also feel sick to my stomach at the same time. And it might as well be something supernatural because I'm the only one feeling so intense about this and I DON'T KNOW WHY!" He shouted to the heavens. Mabel pulled him into a hug. It was a firm hug, letting him know she was still there to help him through this. His body relaxed, and he returned the embrace. When they pulled apart, he sighed. "I just… I was so happy to see her again. She's so amazing, and I love spending time with her. I love those little banter sessions we have when we greet each other. I love it when she takes me to the diner to show off the recipes she's learned. I love it when she comes with me on adventures. I love it when we sit around, whether it's with Wendy or just us, riffing on old movies. I love it when she talks to me about all my discoveries and what new things I wrote in my journal. I love going with her to see her favorite symphonies and operas. I love it when she kicks my ass at video games. I love seeing how happy she is every time she gets one over on her dad. She's just so smart, and bold, and beautiful, and…I just…"

"You really couldn't wait to see her again, could you?" Mabel smiled. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were in love with her."

Something in Dipper clicked at that. His mind suddenly raced through all the information in his head. The sadness in not being able to see her. The anger he felt being unable to help. He suddenly realized that he remembered feeling a similar pain in his chest and stomach long ago when a certain lumberjack girl had left him on a log after giving it to him straight. It was tamer then, but it was obvious what it was. Heartbreak. He thought about all the different ways he loved to spend time with her. How he loved her smarts and her personality. How much he wanted to see her happy, how he wanted to give her all the happiness she deserved. He even remembered something he didn't tell Mabel, a time when they were at the pool. When Dipper had to… go back and take a cold shower after he saw Pacifica in her bikini. At the time, he thought it was just his teenage mind picking a hell of a time to mess with him. But when he thought about it more, none of the other girls really had that effect on him.

All of these facts were laid out in front of him. And it finally hit him.

"I… I am."

Mabel's smile faded.

"I'm in love with Pacifica."

Her face shifted into that of silent shock.

The two of them sat there. Both of them realized that the answer had been staring them in the face. He loved all these things about her because he loved her. How had they not seen it before? Was it that he was far more confident around Pacifica, as a sharp contrast to his crush on Wendy? Was it that Mabel didn't want to make assumptions nowadays unless she knew for sure? So that she could prevent herself from acting like when she was younger? Who knows? They had the solution now, at least.

Mabel would usually squeal with glee at news like this. Especially considering she knew how Pacifica felt about Dipper. But she was still in shock. Plus, she'd promised to keep quiet for Pacifica's sake- that wasn't for her tell. Besides, once the shock started passing over, she had a better idea forming in her head.

Dipper sighed again. "Well. I guess that explains a lot. I feel better now that I know, but… not by much. Wait, do you have a phone?"

"Okay, first of all, you really need to get a phone. Especially if you want to date Pacifica of all people. Secondly, her dad probably took her phone anyway. Thirdly, before I thought of that, I tried calling her again and couldn't get a signal. Maybe there's storms blocking reception over there or something."

"Perfect. If you don't mind me, I'm going to continue finding something to pig out on in depression." Mabel sat up with him and grabbed his shoulders.

"No, you aren't. I told you I could help you. And that's what I'm gonna do. We're going to that island!" She shouted triumphantly, pointing out towards the island.

"You're pointing north."

"Huh? Oh, hold on." She pictured a compass in her and turned around, her hand stopping to the left of Dipper. "We're going to that island!"

"Mabel, how are we supposed to do that? They have security measures designed to find superheroes. And if we wanted to get in legitimately, it would be impossible. Rumor is, Wonder Woman could solve world hunger and still not be let in."

"Shame on you for thinking we're gonna do it legitimately. Don't you remember how this family rolls? We're not breaking Pacifica out this time; we're breaking in to see her!"

"I just said the island has-"

"That may be true, but you know what they aren't ready for? A regular human family that took on monsters, giant robots, and the apocalypse! We've got a grunkle that's a international criminal, another who's a dimensional outlaw, an apocalypse trained lumberjack jock, a comedic relief handyman, and a precious ball of optimism that is probably more appropriate than mine! You and me pissed off a demon several times and lived to tell about it! We can totally break into this snobby resort!"

Dipper looked at her, still unsure. "I don't know…"

"And to top it all off, we can be there to support her against her parents. Because darn it, she may be able to handle them by herself… but she shouldn't have to."

Reminding him of what he said in their last video chat, Dipper's resolve steeled, and his confidence blossomed. "Let's do this."

Mabel gave a wide smile, before starting to chant. "Pines, Pines, Pines, Pines, Pines."

Dipper smiled back at her, joining in. "Pines, Pines, Pines, Pines, Pines!"

"How about that!" The twins stopped as Stan emerged from the doorway. The others followed, quickly stumbling in to check on Dipper. "We heard the chanting of two twins instead of just one! Assumed you two had worked things out! You feeling better, kid?"

"A lot better. Cause we're breaking into Horace Whimsley's resort!"

This surprised the group. Ford questioned this. "Are… you sure? That could end badly. It's built like a fortress. Plus, I believe you said we have to trust in Pacifica. What changed your mind?"

Dipper tripped up at this, not sure if he should admit to what he told Mabel. "W-well…"

Luckily, Mabel covered for him. "Cause we wanna go and show that big-headed jerk why we're more of a family to Pacifica than he could ever be!"

"Hell. I'll do a break-in for that." Wendy said, swinging her ax over her shoulder.

Stan shrugged. "I mean, I've broken into several resorts myself back in the day. Maybe this time I won't get caught!"

Ford's mind was already churning. "It'd be simple to downgrade the old portal into a short-range warp. The trick will be designing it so that we aren't detected immediately. You've been studying your nuclear physics, right Dipper?"

Melody piped in. "I can run the store and cover for y'all while you're working!"

"And I'll be the simple but good-natured comedic relief handyman!" Soos chimed in.

"You read my mind, Soos!" Mabel agreed.

"Yes!" Soos shouted as he pumped his fist.

"Yeah! Let's do a break-in!" Stan shouted. He began chanting once more, and everyone immediately joined him as they marched out the door. "PINES, PINES, PINES, PINES, PINES!"

Before they stepped out of the room, Dipper stopped his sister. "Mabel? Thanks. For everything."

"Always."

"Sincere sibling hug?"

"Sincere sibling hug."

And hug they did.

"…Pat. Pat." The two said in unison, before rushing out the kitchen.

Coincidentally enough, at that very moment, the rain finally let up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is actually my fanfic writing romance, essentially. Honestly, I'm kind of nervous about it being bad. I just hope I can learn to improve if it is. However, I'm far more nervous about writing characters believably falling in love, as you can probably judge by the fact Dip and Paz do have a thing for each other, and well... relationship tags. Still...
> 
> Funny enough, Pacifica's flashback in Chapter 3 was actually shorter as she thought about Dipper. And it kinda only focused on him admiring his muscles?... with only bits and pieces about his personality and how their relationship worked at the time... er, look, it either was or bordered on men-writing-women and it just made me feel like I wasn't doing it right. So i ended up mirroring her thoughts to Dipper, hopefully so that it was less egregious even if it wasn't necessarily an improvement. You know, at least she has more reason to dig him and the feelings are mutual, and...
> 
> You know, I'll just leave it to y'all. If you guys think I can improve, let me know.


	11. Morning Routines

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new day begins on the resort, but Pacifica has reservations about where her life goes from here. Hoping to take her mind off of her now unknown future, she hopes to invite her favorite twins and their family as her new guests. Unfortunately, the phone lines and connections on the entire island have inexplicably gone down. Forced to plan something anew, she instead invites her new friend to the sunny resort beach. As Pacifica goes around asking her friends to accompany her (with Bruce Wayne's suddenly-here son in tow), the others have their own antics and issues going on in the morning- some rather mundane... but others far more serious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are at the final already-made chapter as of now. I'm at work on Chapter 12, but it likely won't be released only a day or two after Chapter 11, like the others have been.

Pacifica woke up with not a single taxidermy in sight. No one was shouting at her to get up, no servants were crowding her room. Just a nice quiet bedroom to sleep in. She simply lay there for a while, relishing the quiet morning. Eventually, she did feel it was time to get out of bed and moved towards the bathroom mirror.

As she looked at her reflection, she couldn't help but feel… unsure. Here she was, thrust upon a new chapter in her life with very little warning. With her mother and father in no way qualified to take care of her, she would now have to fall under another's care. Bruce Wayne would likely not be a permanent guardian. And what of her family's money? Yugi's… 'darker side' made her father give her all of the Northwests' money, but what would that mean once he was taken into American custody? Would his trance make him leave a custodian? Would the government freeze the assets even after it belonged to her?

She was thinking of the wrong questions. Did she even want his money? All things considered, it might as well have been all blood money. Could she really do something good with it at this point? The questions she kept asking in her mind were far too daunting. She couldn't dwell on them anymore or she might have a breakdown. So, she tried to focus on anything at the moment other than that. Like… her hair!

Her hair was perfect, as it always was. Dipper theorized that it was her "weirdness quirk"- an oddity that some people had, one that was pulled towards Gravity Falls' natural weirdness magnet. He reasoned that it was why her hair never messed up, whether it was after she got dirty, wet, etc. That, and it was why she felt so at home in Gravity Falls.

She had scoffed at the idea when he first told her, but ever since then, she couldn't get the concept out of her head. She started to notice things she hadn't even humored before. Dipper was right- her hair acted like a solid mass, instead of hundreds of thousands of individual strands. When she took falls, her hair would fall like a curtain over her face. Her hair wouldn't separate under water, and it didn't even frizz up from static electricity or humidity! (Okay, that last part wasn't so bad. One of a girl's worst hair-enemies was humidity) Adding onto that, her hair didn't knot up either. To her, that made it more like a hair superpower.

She undressed and stepped into the shower. Sure enough, her hair didn't separate or clump. While it did separate when she combed through it with shampoo and conditioner, it would return to form when she finished. Though it didn't bother her technically, she did stay up at night and question it sometimes. Maybe her father made a deal with a hair demon or something?

He was right about another thing though- she already felt homesick. As a young girl, she'd never really thought about where she had lived most her life. Gravity Falls was just her smelly dirty hometown. But one night away from it, and she already started to feel a longing to return to Gravity Falls. It was aggravating. She could only imagine how the twins felt. Especially Dipper… Mabel would tell her how he always felt the more bummed of the two when they were away from Gravity Falls. She'd gone on further to say that he'd always seemed like he was missing a piece in his life before that fateful summer.

She'd questioned Ford about this. What he had to say about the situation was intriguing.

_"Same thing happened with me. That's not saying that I or Dipper were unhappy in life. I'm sure he was happy with his family, just as I was with mine. But we certainly didn't feel like we belonged in Piedmont or Glass Shard Beach. We just didn't know that at the time. Places like Gravity Falls satisfy that longing for us. It's why so many odd people live in this town. They all end up here eventually. Well, that or other weirdness magnets around the globe. This town isn't the only one after all. If you looked for them, there's small towns all over the planet that act like Gravity Falls. They're all just weaker in comparison."_

_"So, what? We can't like, go on vacation anywhere, or else we'll feel like our soul's been ripped out?"_

_"Maybe not so harsh as that. It's more like you simply long to get back as soon as you can. You feel a little lost, so to speak. In Dipper's case, he hadn't lived here until a few years ago. Finding that missing piece and then being taken away from it… it's hard to cope with that. So, you can understand why he always wants to come back. Stanley and I even plan to help him acquire property when he decides to move out here."_

_"Doesn't that sound kinda weird? …Like, in a bad way?"_

_"I wouldn't say so. I'm content with living here. It feels like where I belong. Dipper feels the same. It's… like when a hermit crab finds the perfect shell. Just feels right."_

_"But what If I need to do business in other countries? What if I just want a change of scenery? I can't just suffer emotional pain because I want to get away for a while."_

_"You're probably not going to suffer like Dipper does. You've lived here all your life. You know what it's like to have that piece from the start. You'd probably cope better staying away from Gravity Falls for a long period of time. However, I'd guarantee you still feel homesick for it rather quickly. It just wouldn't get to you as easily."_

_"But you still feel it no matter what?"_

_"Well, there is a solution. I've noticed that Dipper doesn't have that lost feeling when I come to town. At first, I didn't think anything of it, but I noticed the same with myself, and it caught my interest. After interviewing some people around town and testing my theory, I came to a startling discovery-"_

_"Testing?"_

_"Nothing like what you're thinking, Pacifica. I merely sent several pairs of people with oddities on paid vacations. When they got back, they confirmed my suspicions… none of them felt that lost feeling. Conclusion: When oddities venture away from weirdness magnets with other oddities, it acts as a sort of medication, alleviating the symptoms. Gives that feeling of familiarity without needing to be in town."_

_"So… just take someone weird from Gravity Falls with me?"_

_"Essentially. Now, could you pass me that cage with the orange fluff? Please be wary, it's both extremely poisonous and easily combustible."_

Now there was an idea. Pacifica needed to figure out what to do with her father's money, if she ended up getting it. She needed help figuring out where to go next in her life in general. And she really didn't want to worry about homesickness on top of all that.

That settled it. She'd call the Pines. Nothing was stopping her from inviting them as her guests. Nothing was stopping her from hanging out with them. Most especially, no one was stopping her from confessing to a certain someone.

Finishing her shower, she fished her phone out from her belongings, intent on a far happier call than last time.

Only to see her phone had no reception.

"Ugh. Seriously? Maybe Mr. Wayne has a better phone."

Getting dressed in her usual public garb, she made her way into the lobby of Wayne's room, hoping to find a phone (or at least breakfast).

The living room area of her temporary residence was spacious, with a far more casual nature. She felt like she could breathe in here. She found the suite's phone waiting for her there, and immediately went for it. Unfortunately, that too had terrible connection. "You have got to be kidding me. If it's not one thing, it's like, another." She sighed. She regressed into saying "like" at random points in her sentences when she was miffed or frustrated. She probably should calm down, but it was hard to do that when the one thing she'd hoped to do was halted in its tracks.

"Phones have been down since this morning."

"Really? How can the phones be down- AGH!" Pacifica jumped, realizing that she wasn't the only one in the room. At the dining room table was a young boy who looked to be eleven years old, giving her a neutral look. "Um… hi."

"If my voice was enough to scare you, then I hate to see what happens when Alfred comes in."

Pacifica gave him a flat look. "Well, can you blame me, considering you weren't here last night?" The boy simply went back down to the paper he had the table. Spring break homework, probably. "Who are you, anyway?"

"I don't know. Why would a young boy be in the suite of Bruce Wayne?"

Pacifica didn't really care for his sarcasm. She figured she'd get hit with another crack no matter what she answered, so she decided to humor him. A young boy in Mr. Wayne's suite that looked a lot like him… that either meant he was a clone, or the more obvious answer- "Damian Wayne, I'm guessing?"

 **"Brilliant deduction."** Damian eyes widened when he realized Pacifica had simultaneously said his exact words. He turned to her with a flat look of his own.

"Yeah. I've played the sarcasm game before."

"Master Damian, please stop antagonizing the girl. She's had a long night, if I've heard correctly." She saw Alfred come from the hallway with his sleeves pulled back. "Or at the very least, get along during breakfast. I'd much rather not see my hard work used as ammunition against one another."

"Oh, Alfred, you don't have to make anything for me. I was planning to make breakfast for myself this morning."

"Nonsense, Miss Pacifica. As I've said, you've had a long night. You should take the time to relax."

"Alright, I choose to relax by cooking." She joined him in the kitchen. She pulled out the supplies to make her favorite- eggs on toast. "I've been itching to cook again. God knows my dad wouldn't let me do it on account of it being "commoner's work" or whatever." She oiled up her pan before throwing two fairly large mushrooms and some tomatoes on a vine into a pan for sides, before toasting some sourdough.

Damian raised his brow. "Seriously? What, was he an idiot?"

"Ah, now there's a comment I can get behind. So, to answer your question… yeah, pretty much."

Alfred shook his head. "Such arrogance to think that a simple chore of everyday life is beneath you. I take it you had far different opinions on it?" He was currently creating a salsa verde.

"Oh, I love it. Ever since I was a little girl, I've wanted to make amazing food… or… for some of it anyway." She said while stirring her scramble.

"Some of it, you say?"

"Yeah. Like I said, my parents thought cooking was for the help, so they pushed me to let go of it. And they used such gracious methods to do so…"

Damian noticed she wasn't stirring for a second, but rather shaking.

"So, no one was really around to support your dream?" He prepared some salmon to be smoked.

"Well… there was someone. We had a head chef- Miss Bernadette Hollenday. She used to cook the most amazing things for me when I was feeling down, or worse… she was the only one who really made me feel loved in that house. Treated me more like a daughter than my own mother ever did." She finished making her dish, pouring the eggs on her toast.

"Perhaps you could reconnect with her then. Especially now that your father doesn't have a hold over you."

"I… I don't know about that. I'm the one who got her fired. Made her show me how to cook something even though my parents warned me not to." Her face fell. "Plus, I have a feeling my parents did something terrible to her anyway. I tried to at least look her up at times, but I couldn't find her anywhere. It's as if she vanished."

Alfred placed a hand on her shoulder. "You mustn't blame yourself for your parents' ignorance, Miss Pacifica. As Anne Sullivan once said, "It's a great mistake to put children off with falsehoods and nonsense, when their growing powers of observation and discrimination excite in them a desire to know about things". You wanted to learn of a wondrous thing, but your parents chose to stifle your excitement for petty reasons instead."

Pacifica smiled back at him. "Thank you, Alfred. Here's the eggs, I'm going to dig into my masterpiece." She scooped the other ingredients of her breakfast onto her plate, and headed over to the table.

"Thank you, dear."

Damian watched the interaction unfold, appearing unfazed by Pacifica's emotional ordeal. He simply took his phone out while still writing away at his paper.

* * *

Bruce Wayne looked out from his room's window. Phone reception had been offline since midnight. Now, even with the Nanobats, any call made to the outside would arouse suspicion. He was lucky he made the call for Damian to come to the island before the lines went down. But now he had no allies he could contact without blowing their cover.

Whimsely was up to something. Letting known villains onto his island without keeping a constant eye on them was one thing. It could be written off as ignorant. Losing telecommunications right after the Northwest incident was completely different. Whimsley hadn't even let the guests know that one of them had been arrested last night. And unsubtly trying to take custody of Pacifica on top of all that cemented his suspicions.

There was also the trio of villains that still remained. Though their initial plan was stopped, the group would repurpose their plan before long. With the Cosmos Resort currently cut off from the rest of the world, they might have a chance to cover their tracks. He needed to keep an eye on them too.

Vlad was dangerous for sure, but he could often gain tunnel vision, focusing too much on his own personal desires. On the other hand, his powers were tricky. Intangibility like Jonn, possession like Deadman, duplication, invisibility, the list went on.

On the surface, Fisk seemed smalltime, only trying to steal monkey-related artifacts to keep for himself. But these artifacts contained mystic properties that ranged from hazardous to cataclysmic. His own current state was the result of such, giving him enhanced strength and agility, and mystical "monkey power". He capitalized on this with his mastery of Tai Shing Pek Kwar.

However, the most dangerous of them all was Princess Morbucks. She used to be a bratty girl… until Lex Luthor. Now instead of loud, unsubtle, and impulsive, she was patient, intelligent, and manipulative. She was the reason the League wouldn't make a move on the trio just yet. She had taken lessons from Lex personally on how to cover her tracks even in the face of strong evidence.

There were a lot of things to be done, targets to be shadowed, restricted areas to be investigated. Which means he didn't have time to watch over Pacifica, unfortunately.

And exactly the reason why he had Damian flown in.

After Whimsley's suspicious behavior, he needed someone to watch over Pacifica, someone he knew could catch suspicious occurrences far better than Ben could. While Ben would be the one to help her feel comfortable, Damian would be on the lookout for threats.

His son hadn't been particularly happy about "babysitting" duty. He eventually agreed, though reluctantly. But that wasn't the only reason he did it. Damian had been spending less time doing things that a kid his age should do, and he blamed himself partially for that. Damian would train and investigate more but would neglect to "hang" with friends on the Titans or do anything recreationally. Having him be a bodyguard while on a resort island of all places seemed like it shouldn't help, but it was so Pacifica and her friends could entice him to loosen up. It was fine, he was sure Damian could still be sharp minded while having fun. A little recreation would be good for him. Still, he couldn't help but doubt. He was supposed to be his father, but it was likely his own influence on his son that pushed him to be so reclusive. It had done similar things to Dick, way back. He'd become more like Bruce than he cared to admit while leading the Titans, and it took a while for him to become as relaxed as he was before they parted ways. Not to mention what happened to… Jason. He'd almost gotten it right with Tim before failing to save his father. Stephanie, he pushed away before taking back in, and with Cass he certainly had many failures with before they reconciled. And the less said about Harper's mother, the better. He had gotten them hurt or affected them psychologically one way or another. It made him… concerned as to how Damian would turn out while under his care.

An angry groaning from outside interrupted his thoughts. Probably for the best. He would have to think more on this later. Right now, there was work to be done.

He entered the kitchen, finding Pacifica fiddling with her phone, and Damian and Alfred eating the butler's latest culinary work. "Pacifica. Good to see you're up. I take it you've been wanting to call someone you know?"

"I should at least be getting LTE, or something. But no matter what I try, I can't patch through."

"Whimsley sent a personal message to all room phones. They'll work on the issue, and it'll supposedly be fixed before the end of the week."

Pacifica huffed in disappointment. "Right. Fine."

He placed a hand on her shoulder. "You'll see them again in time. But you're not completely without company here. I'm sure your friends on the island might be interested in partaking in the resort's facilities. Perhaps spending time with them will keep you in good spirits."

Pacifica glanced to her side, before donning a smile. "You're right. This day isn't miserable yet."

"If I could ask, could you take Damian with you? He's… been troubled by schoolwork recently. Spending time with your group might help him take his mind off things."

Pacifica gave him an unsure look and mulled it over for a second. "Well, he does seem to have a stick up him. My friends and I might be able to do something, but he may be lost to us."

"You're a comedian," Was all he said.

Pacifica glanced outside. She snapped her fingers and headed for her room. "Get a swimsuit. It's a nice, sunny day… a perfect kind of day for the beach."

Damian listened in to hear her shut her door, at which he immediately scowled at his father. ""Troubled by schoolwork"? Really? I can finish those assignments in my sleep."

Bruce resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Just use the cover and keep an eye on Pacifica. I still don't know what Whimsley wants from her, but it can't be anything good."

* * *

"What are you up to, Joey?"

"Building my super champion deck for this week's competition." He said, deciding between two cards. He looked up for a moment. "Time out, did you just call me by the nickname my fans gave me?"

"Well, seemed like you took a liking to it last night."

"Yeah, from my fans. To you and everyone else it's still Jonouchi."

"Ok. Whatever you say, Joey."

"Good. Glad we sorted that- HEY!"

Honda changed the subject. "Have you seen Yugi yet? I've been wondering if he's updated his deck since the last tournament he entered."

Jonouchi scowled at him. "Nah, he must still be asleep. I'm more than happy to let him though, especially after last night."

"I getcha. What about Anzu?"

"Haven't seen her either. Though I know better than to wake her up before she wants to. Why?"

"Well, I figured we could go find our new pals from around the place. We are on a resort, so why sit around in a suite all day?"

"Now you're talking. Let's give Yugi and Anzu about another hour, then we can round 'em up." He went back to his cards but was interrupted by a knock on their door. "What the… didn't we already order room service this morning?"

Honda shrugged, before going to the door. When he opened it, he found Pacifica there. "Well, look who it is!"

"Hey, Honda."

Jonouchi recognized the voice and nearly trampled over Honda getting to the doorway. "Yo, Paz! What brings you here?"

"Hey, Joey." Jonouchi faltered but allowed Pacifica to call him that. "We would have called, but phone lines and service are down all over the island."

"Say wha!?" Honda exclaimed, throwing Jonouchi off of himself. ("NYEEEHH!" *crash*) He took out his phone to confirm. "The hell? How does a billion-dollar resort lose its utilities like that?"

"Beats me. But it meant we had to come around and see you guys ourselves. We already went to Sam and Danny."

"We? Who's we?" Jonouchi asked from his 'comfy' new position. Darting their eyes around, the knuckleheads noticed the young man standing next to Paz.

"Who's this? Your brother or something?" Honda asked.

"Are you sure we have to invite these two?" He asked, already earning him angry looks from the two.

"These four. And yes, I'm sure." She turned back Honda. "This is Damian. He's Bruce's son."

Jonouchi got up. "Oh, the guy that sells tech or whatever. Like Kaiba."

"My father's company has a hand in any business you can think of. Seto Kaiba wishes he had the enterprise of Bruce Wayne."

 _"Geez. Sensitive, much?"_ Thought Jonouchi and Honda.

"Anyway," Pacifica interjected. "We came by to invite you guys to come with us to the beach."

Jonouchi smiled. "The beach? Now there's a way to spend the day! Of course we will!"

"Oh, by the way… how's Yugi doing?" Pacifica asked, curious to how he was.

Honda shrugged. "We haven't seen him this morning. Both of us assumed he was still in bed."

"Well, if he's feeling up to it, tell him he's more than welcome to join us. Anzu too."

Jonouchi pulled out a thumbs up. "You bet. Where are we gonna meet?"

"The northern beach area, around 2 o'clock. Now, the two of us have to get going to get everyone else on board."

"Good luck with that. Hope to see everyone there!"

Pacifica nodded and headed out, with Damian simply following her without a reaction.

"So, guess now's a good time to wake Yugi and Anzu up, eh?" Jonouchi said, closing the door.

"Yeah… let's wake up Yugi first. I think she'll respond better to him than us."

"Agreed."

Jonouchi was soon knocking on Yugi's door with reckless abandon. "Rise and shine, Yug. Pacifica came by with a proposition." No answer.

"Man, he must really be conked out." Honda scratched his head.

"No kidding." Jonouchi reached for the handle of the door.

"And just what do you think you're doing?" Honda questioned.

"Well, if he's that knocked out, I think we're gonna need to get a bit physical."

"Are you serious? Just wait a little bit longer, won't ya?"

"Can't waste too much time, Honda. I'm sure Yugi's itching to meet with Paz again anyway." He argued, pushing the door open.

"You're just the king of winging it, huh?" Honda snipped. However, Jonouchi didn't answer him. His face had paled into a deep blue. "Uh… Earth to Joey. You in there? The hell are you looking a-" Honda got his answer pretty quickly when he peeked into the room. His face soon reflected Jonouchi's. Yugi was indeed still sound asleep, as they thought. Anzu, on the other hand, was now wide awake. She seemed to be lacking some vital pieces of clothing, though she was shielding herself with the sheets to make up for it. She too had turned a bright pink, though it quickly changed to a shade of bull-enraging red.

The two realized they had to try and mend this situation as fast as they could. Both looked up into the ceiling. "I don't… see anything. Do you?" Jonouchi asked Honda.

"Not a thing. It looks like Yugi's still asleep, so we'll tell him about Paz asking us to meet her at the beach at 2… later."

"Right. Sounds good." Jonouchi closed the door hurriedly.

 _"You two aren't getting out of this that easily."_ Anzu thought. _"When I get properly dressed, you two are dead."_

Meanwhile, Jonouchi and Honda were sitting in their suite's lobby, blank stares on their faces.

"Hey, Honda?"

"Yeah?"

"You think there was a lot more that happened at that little New York meetup of theirs than we thought?"

"I think so."

"Yeah. Me too. Not sure if I want to find out any more of them."

"Me neither."

* * *

"How much do you want to bet Billy will be there before all of us?" Julie asked Rook, having just received Pacifica's offer.

Rook was currently seeing what he could do about their communications, which had been completely cut with the rest of the island's phone receptions. "Enough Taydenite to bankrupt all of the people on this island. Though I suppose it is good that he is not at our throats for the time being. Were it not for his infatuation, he would likely be pulling petty pranks on us."

"Certainly sounds like Billy." She noticed that the room belonging to her and Ben was open. "Rook…"

The Revonnahgander didn't look up from his work but let her know he was listening. "Hmm?"

"Is it… my fault? My fault that Ben still hasn't bounced back emotionally? Am I doing something wrong?"

That interrupted Rook's focus. "No, Julie. I am going to say that right now. The attack was neither yours nor Ben's fault. It is just… very hard to move on from an incident like that."

"I've know. But I've been trying so hard to help him, and it seems like I've barely made progress."

"It will take more time. Just like it will take more time for you to properly adjust to your new biology. Which I believe is what he is still distressed about."

"It's… daunting to embrace it."

"I would be surprised if it was not."

"So what?" Julie said, snapping, but still whispering. "It's easy for you to be so calm about this, but what do you expect me to do? Just throw my mask off and take on this new identity like it's nothing? Because leaving behind who I used to be… it's so much to handle."

Julie glared at Rook, who again answered her calmly. "He will be there to help you through it. Just as you can continue to be there for him. And you are not leaving all of what you were behind. You are still Julie, and he knows that especially. He loves you too much to let you lose yourself."

Julie's face saddened and turned towards the bathroom door. She slowly moved towards it, hoping she could take this next step.

In the bathroom, Ben looked into the mirror after vigorously washing his face. He stared into the reflection for some time.

He wasn't surprised when it talked to him. **"So, you managed to not entirely screw up looking after Pacifica. Good job, I guess. It's just too bad that you couldn't stop her from taken in the first place."**

_"We got her out of there. That's enough, isn't it?"_

**"But you could've done better. Instead of keeping her completely safe, you let her get hit with PTSD. You forced her to deal with a rogue Yugi on her own."**

_"You're… wrong. We couldn't have known."_

**"Oh, Mister Savior-of-the-Universe didn't see an uptight idiot with a bell coming? Really? Face it, you can't handle the responsibility of helping people. Not Pacifica, and certainly not Julie. So why don't you hang up the watch already and leave it to the professionals."** Ben's face scrunched up, wanting the voice to stop.

A knock on the door interrupted both of them. "Uh… Ben? Can I come in for a moment?" Julie asked, causing Mirror Ben to "fade".

"Uh, sure." Julie slowly came in, closing the door behind her. They stared at each other for a second, before awkwardly glancing away. "So… I've been thinking about something."

"O-oh yeah?"

"Yeah. About this mask…" She raised her hands up to the sides of her temples. Ben tensed up. "I was thinking… I've been wearing it for so long. Maybe I could go without it today." With that, she removed the ID mask. A flash of light enveloped the bathroom, forcing Ben to shield his eyes. When his sight returned, he saw Julie's true form in front of him. Still humanoid in shape, but instead with pitch black skin, accentuated with green technological lines. Her torso down to her legs inverted the pattern, most of it hidden by the tank top and pajama shorts she still wore. Her eyes were replaced by one green circular outline, and her mouth shined green when she opened it. To Ben, he knew the traits belonged to the species of Galvanic Mechamorph, or as he called the sample in his Omnitrix, Upgrade. He had seen this form once before, after the incident. But that was when both of them were in great emotional distress. She stayed silent, somewhat scared by his expression. "How… do I look?"

Ben said nothing for a moment, scaring her more. But before she could rush to put the mask back on, he moved forward and cupped her head into his hands. "You look beautiful."

Julie looked into his eyes, seeing the utmost sincerity within them. She shed tears, and smiled joyfully, before pulling him into a kiss. They stood there for some time, lost in each other.

It hadn't fixed everything. But it was the first big step.

* * *

"Now, I know you prefer to stay out of the sun anyways, but I've packed up your bag with some sunscreen. Just in case." Sam's parents were doting on her again. She'd hoped they wouldn't do this, but apparently last night had riled the two of them up. So when they heard Pacifica at the door, inviting her and Danny on a beach day, they immediately went overboard.

"Yeah, Mom, I get it. We'll be fine. We need to get a move on now, or we'll be late."

"Alright, Sweetie, we'll let you go. Just… consider what we said last night, okay?"

Sam simply grunted. Danny followed her out, and once outside and away from the suite door, he felt compelled to ask. "What exactly did they talk to you about?"

"Me picking a fight with Kaiba. They saw me glaring at him last night and tried to put a kibosh on that. Tried saying that it wouldn't end well."

"I kind of agree. The guy barely gave you a second thought. Maybe it's best to let this one go and enjoy the vacation."

"You're kidding, right? Of course he was going to ignore me. It's not about the war crimes at the moment, it's about his influence on Pacifica."

"I think you might be overreacting a bit."

"You're kidding, right? Kaiba is the worst possible person to become an influence on Pacifica. The guy is most certainly a nutjob, on top of being a corrupt mogul."

"What makes you say that?"

"Firstly, there's the fact that the guy is obsessed with Duel Monsters. He holds Duel Monsters tournaments left and right, and always enters them himself. Most of his company thrives off the game, and he seeks out the rarest cards of any new line almost instantly."

"So he likes a card game. Even jerks have hobbies, right?"

"Not like this. See, Seto Kaiba has these three cards with him known as the "Blue Eyes White Dragon". He doesn't use them now that the game's meta has changed, but they're still his prized possessions."

"O…kay?"

"But they used to belong to three other people around the world. All of them met with tragedy, one way or another. One of them mysteriously went bankrupt. Another was assaulted by gang members, and one even committed suicide."

"…You're not saying…?"

"Kaiba was the cause of it."

Danny blinked, his eyes wide in horror. "And… how exactly do you know this?"

"Because he said it. Right in front of a live audience."

Danny looked at her funny. "How did he get away with that?!"

"Getting to that. But that's not even the end of it. In that same live card game, claims said by whistleblowers say he used realistic holographic images to attack the loser, an older man. That man just so happens to be Yugi's grandfather."

"What?!"

"That still isn't all. He apparently took Yugi into a deeper part of his theme park, a section literally called Death-T, boasting that it was the only way to save his grandfather. Old associates of his father have made claims that Seto drove him to suicide by systematically taking over the company. His adoptive father was a piece of garbage too, but Kaiba's not much better. Especially if what they say is true. And most recently, he desecrated an Egyptian tomb and pillaged an Egyptian artifact like some 20th century English prick; where he then hosted another tournament to gain the last two pieces for it. The whole time he ranted about "bringing back the pharaoh" and rejecting anything Yugi said about him."

"Wait, but there is a pharaoh. Yugi told us about him."

"Exactly. He went through all that effort because he had unresolved issues with a dead guy."

"So again, why hasn't he been arrested?"

Sam growled. "The public thinks it's all an act. A play put on by him. If only because Yugi still participated in his tournaments afterward, and even went into business with him. Also the fact that his grandfather, alive and well, glosses over the incident and keeps saying it was no big deal. Paraphrasing, of course."

"Well to be fair, if Yugi and his friends tolerate him, that would suggest that he's… changed?" Danny suggested, unsure.

Sam balked. "Yeah, or it could be that he's rich and crazy, and they don't want to get on his bad side without their wrathful best friend ghost."

"Okay, so Kaiba is obviously… unhinged. Why haven't you said anything to Paz?"

"I didn't tell Pacifica because she's enamored with his "coolness". You saw how she was around him last night. I need to really get close to her to show her what kind of man Kaiba really is. Otherwise, she'll write off all the evidence as an act, just like the public. I'm spending all week with her and keeping her away from Kaiba as much as possible." She leaned against the wall of the elevator, retreating somewhat into her head.

"I refuse to let that _psychopath_ sink his claws into her."

**Author's Note:**

> And we're off. I've made it up to Chapter 11 as of posting this first chapter, so that's how much you can expect to see without it being uninterrupted (kind of).
> 
> Be on the lookout for the next chapters!


End file.
